Heroes of the Republic City
by testament5524
Summary: When Shadow Society turned their attention to the youngest Nation, heroes young and old must band together and stop their advances, led by the enigmatic Dark One who, for the most part, had his own agenda. Modern AU, superhero theme.
1. Epilogue - Victory?

**Epilogue – Victory?**

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

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><p><em>For all intents and purposes, we have won…<em>

That was what Iroh had said and Zuko was not sure if he could believe what his uncle had said. The Black Riders were no more although he still heard some rumors about a superhero with the power of invisibility defending the Dragon Flats Borough; the rest of them, like their leader, the Dark One, had simply vanished.

Zuko was not sure what to make of it but something told him to stay away from the Borough; he was sure the Riders blamed the Blue Spirit for what happened. Mai was… well, Mai; still pretending that she did not know about the Blue Spirit and Zuko did the same, pretending that he did not know of Stealth though Mai, unlike him, had hung her mask.

Ty Lee was as bubbly as ever.

Azula had struck out on her own, no longer with the trio or anyone from Team Avatar in her missions, now fueled with vigor unlike any other; it was like she was trying to exterminate crime overnight, doubling her effort to clear the streets of Republic City, pulling more weight to compensate for the ones left by the absence of the Riders, or, more specifically, the Dark One. The Phoenix had become a feared figure among the criminals, with conduct bordering on antihero, testing the limits of the law to the max.

Zuko never confronted her about the Dark One. Zuko was sure Azula was the only one who knew of the Dark One's secret identity and the big brother in him knew that Azula would carry the secret to the grave. The big brother in him also felt for his little sister.

Azula had a heart, he knew. He always knew though, at times, he refused to acknowledge it. It made things easier between them; contempt, suspicion, competition are like grease in the gears of their brother-sister relationship. And if Zuko noticed the change in Azula's blue flame, now imbued with a golden core, he did not let it show.

Even Katara worried about her sometimes. She often called Zuko to check on Azula, still oblivious that Zuko knew of her and the… _Gaang's_ nightly activities. Seriously, with Aang and Sokka calling each other by names…

Things would never be the same again, Zuko accepted that fact. He stood up and tugged on his dark leather jacket, nodding goodbye to Ikem's headstone, silently promising that he would continue to look after Korra and the others. Agni, how he wished he had never taken up the mask.

For all intents and purposes, they had won.

But, the Blue Spirit's fight was not over yet.

…oh, it was not over.


	2. Chapter 1 - Republic City

**Chapter 1 – Republic City**

Disclaimer: I own nothing

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><p>The nights of the Republic City were rarely safe.<p>

They thought it was a good idea: a mass of land where the people of the Four Nations could live in harmony. It was located along the Western Coast of the Earth Kingdom, along the Mo Ce Sea, the international sea route, and was easy to reach at the time of its conception from any of the Nations. However, they simply assumed that the local Earth Kingdom and their headstrong tradition, the Fire Nation and their high-strung attitude, the Water Tribe and their ways that were considered by many to be backward, and the Air Nomad and their carefree ways to get along nicely.

The initial result was a war and it was ugly. Over time, they settled down and began to build a community from the rubbles, one that actually works but still with the resentment and contempt interwoven in the fabric of the community. Now, it stood proud, in the front at least, as the model of how all cities in the Four Nations should be: united.

In the front, at least.

The people were far from united. Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom still ruled over the others with their wealth; they were the richest, the most powerful, the brightest, the strongest. The Water Tribe were the underdog, their very nationality were synonymous with below average wealth, with slums, with drugs. The Air Nomads, who refused to leave their monastic ways completely, were almost cast out, living now in an island off shore the Republic City. Although, with the exception of the Air Nomad, who still remained true to their monastic ways for the most part, the lines between the three other nationalities did get blurred and now, hundreds of years after the conception of the United Republic of Nations, now a country of its own, unity was achieved. Sort of. It was not perfect; like blocks of bricks glued together by mud, it held but it was not perfect.

And even now, crime haunted the night.

The Dragon Flats Borough, a huge chunk of the city where the lower income people lived, was the devil's playground. And, although now we could see the three armed robbers in an SUV making a run for it, chased by two police cruisers, tearing up the night with the roaring sound of their engines, their skidding wheels, the sirens, and the submachine guns the robbers shot at the police cars, let us pause for a moment because, well… the story did not start here.

For all intents and purposes, the story started ten years ago.

Ten years ago when, in the dead of night of the Southern Air Temple, a young two years old boy woke up and coursed through the stone hallway of the temple with his albino mastiff puppy, rubbing his sleepy gray eyes as he wandered to the main hall on autopilot. It was late and it was past the curfew but the nightmare he had just had was terrible; he could still hear the ruckus and the scream in his ears.

Though… he was not hearing it in his head; as the light from the opening slit of the massive main hall double doors hit his face, a faint orange from the candles and torches hit his face, as did a splatter of blood of his massacred brethren. One of the monks were slammed front first to the slit and the man's gray eyes on his bloody face widened with horror, his trembling lips mouthed '_run'_ before a sickening ripping of flesh silenced the chaos and the man slid down slowly of the slit, letting light to once again shone through the opening for the two years old boy of gray eyes to see the stranger's face under a soldier helmet; the two years old boy could see nothing but his lower face, his stiff mouth framed by two lines of moustache that was long and thin and parted in the middle, and the thin needlelike goatee.

The two years old boy with the gray eyes would never forget that smirk.

And across the ocean, in the Southern Water Tribe, at the dead of night, a little four years old girl of blue eyes watched in horror as those men in black tactical outfit, in masks, and with submachine guns threw her mother onto floor, demanding to know where the little girl was. And there the little girl was, bravely holding in her sobs while her teary blue eyes peeked from inside the closet where her mother had stashed her, whispering words of comfort. _"Don't worry, sweetie",_ her mother had said, smiling softly. _"I'll handle this"_, and she believed that her mother would. Her mother was strong; every female in her family was, including her, and so she must not cry and had to stay put. Even her father, who was away with her older brother on a fishing trip, often said so; that her mother was strong. And so the little girl knew that she had to be strong too… for her mother.

And yet, as the muffled whistling sound of bullets escaped the barrel of the gun of the nearest masked man, painting her mother red with the woman's own blood, the little girl felt a jolt unlike any other. The man with his smoking gun caught the sound of her hitched sob and turned his masked head slowly to the closet; cold amber eyes caught the sight of blue ones through the slit of the doors. And so, she screamed…

…and froze the whole room and all those people with frost…

And in a land very much unlike hers, in the Earth Kingdom… somewhere in the Earth Kingdom, in an underground facilities where computer panels were tended by people in white lab coats, stood several children not much older than the girl with blue eyes; stood, or floated, they were, each in a tube filled with strange green liquid, submerged completely and sustained by a tubed mask that supplied their air and smaller tubes of IV that kept them nourished. The only door at the higher level of the facility, on a walkway, was blasted open and a mid-twenty lady in black military armor bust through, followed by men who dressed similarly to her. They subdued and captured the men and women in white lab coats and the lady's green eyes hardened at the sight of the children floating in tubes. Numerous of them were lined up in rows of three and the front row housed two boys of pale skin and black hair and one girl of tan skin and brown hair.

One of the men in black military armor lowered his gun and gaped at the sight of the girl. "Dear spirits, Lin… it's Korra!"

"I know", the lady, Lin Beifong, growled. "Get her out of there, Tenzin. And find Toph."

One of the boys with pale skin and black hair opened his amber eyes weakly. "Bolin…" he whispered.

And far to the west, where the night was quite young, a little girl of four years old hugged her knees, rocking back and forth and sobbed, cold and scared in the cramped metal room they had put her in. Vapor escaped her nose and mouth each time she sobbed and her amber eyes stared pleadingly from time to time when her mother came and looked through the circular glass on the door. She wanted to scream, she wanted to talk, wanted to ask to be let out; she did not want to do this anymore. She was scared and alone and cold; the room was cold, so cold like a freezer with layers of thick frost on every surface, and she was cold, clad only in her nightrobe for she was just about to sleep when her parents fetched her in her room and carried her to the basement of their lavish estate where her uncle was waiting. And they put her in this cold freezing room without saying a word.

She did not know what she did wrong and she did not know why her mother would not speak to her, why she would not respond when she was banging on the door, crying loudly.

She was cold and scared and so she did the only thing she could… she screamed.

Inferno engulfed her tiny body and filled the room with roaring flames, her mother staggered backward and fell into the arms of her stone-faced father. Her uncle sat at the table and sipped his tea calmly but loudly so he could not hear her scream that was louder as the flame turned blue.

A few floors above, in the room of the girl's brother, a boy slept peacefully in his bed, with a smile on his face and a small gray and black husky puppy on the floor, completely oblivious to the things happening downstairs.

A little distance away, at the foot of the Royal Caldera City of Fire Nation, the city where the little girl and her family lived, a boy of eight years old woke up, screaming with terror etched in the amber eyes of his. His grandmother burst into his room and quickly held him down as he convulsed violently.

And that brought us back to the car chase in the present day, where a SUV ridden by three robbers was still being chased by two police cruisers; three now as a gray sedan joined in, manned by two detectives who just happened to be around the vicinity.

Up above the buildings of the Republic City, three silhouettes watched the chase closely. The middle one was a girl with a petite frame, clad in red and gold outfit, tight inner garb and pants of dark red under a haori –a long sleeveless coat-, bracers, and boots of fiery red and with gold metal embroidered all over, forming artistic curves and lines that depicts flames, with mask that covered the upper half of her face, held securely by a headband, and a belt that held her entire outfit, including her haori, both also red with gold flames, and her long raven hair up in a high ponytail, with two flocks of hair framing the sides of her face, and her red painted lips smirked as she calculated her next move.

The one on her right stood taller than her, wearing airy baggy robe of wine red, with sleeves so wide she held her hands in them like ladies of the old, long dark hair that was held in her hood, with two long flocks pouring out the side of her head from behind her ears, and a plain dark mask that covered the entirety of her face, leaving none but her dark amber eyes shining through the eye slits.

The third girl was clad in a tight fitting garb that exposed her midriff, with light outer garb, armguards, boots, and belt colored purple and inner outfit of dark pink, brown hair in a long braid and mask of purple with pinkish lines forming pattern of flames like the ones on her braces and boots.

The third girl stored her binoculars on the small bag she had strapped behind her waist and she chirped. "They're coming our way", she nearly squealed. "How do you know they're coming this way, Az—"

The first girl tilted her head to the third one slightly and glared through the thin slits of her mask.

"Uh… I mean, _Phoenix_?" the third girl laughed nervously, rubbing the back of her neck and visibly shrunk.

"It's easy", Phoenix started, sounded bored, crossing her arms and rubbing circles with her fingers on her exposed creamy white skin on the small part where her elbows were, between her sleeves and her armguards. "The traffic lines intersect around here", she lifted her fingerless gloved hand and pointed at the bottlenecked lines that converged into a main street along which the building they were perching on stood. "This street leads to the industrial area where these scums gathered and, luckily enough, there is only one way to get to the industrial area from the Dragon Flats Bank."

"Wow… that is so smart, Phoenix", the girl in pink gushed.

"Not really", came out flatly from Phoenix and the other girl.

"Well, here they come, girls", Phoenix smirked as the SUV made a sharp turn and entered the main street. "Stealth, Acro, you know what to do", Phoenix said as she spread her arms and let the gravity dragged her down, all the way down, all ten storeys down. Her haori flipped wildly like the wings of a majestic phoenix and she landed in a brilliant flash of blue flame right on top of the speeding SUV.

The robbers inside the car were startled and before they could do anything, Phoenix punched through the roof with her bare fist, making the robbers scream loudly like little girls.

Acro and Stealth were waiting further down the road, standing tall in the way of the speeding car.

Up above a different building, unbeknownst to the three vigilantes, the Blue Spirit stalked.

-F-I-R-E-

**Heroes of the Republic City**

-F-I-R-E-

Azula closed the mirrored wall-mounted medicine chest and uncorked the bottle of aspirin she found in it; she caught the sight of her face and marveled at how pale her lips were and how bloodshot her eyes looked. She ignored it and did not feel weird anymore of how a fourteen years old girl like her did not even care of how unseemly she looked. She popped two of the white pills and drank from the tap, washing her face while she was at it.

She rose and took another look of her wet face in the mirror. She looked tired.

Holding in a groan, she exited the bathroom and walked through the carpeted hallway back to her own room, walking past a door behind which her brother was sleeping. Zuko's room was messy and filled with books and papers; his large husky curled up on the floor on a bunch of papers.

Zuko woke up with a start as his alarm clock beeped and, groaning, he patted blindly to the direction of the noise and hit the button on the small and black contraption that shaped like a police car; it was a Christmas gift from his sister.

Slowly, the boy rose up and rubbed his tired eyes. The red blocky lines of the digital clock said that it was six in the morning.

_(Republic City, Goldenbell – the Kais' Residence; Tuesday, 23 July 2013, 06:00 AM) _

Zuko got up and stretched, his dog jerked awake but lay back down, eyeing its master with its striking blue eyes as Zuko fetched his toothbrush and made his way out of the room. He turned and knocked on his sister's room to wake her up but waited for no response before he staggered to the bathroom of the second floor that he and Azula shared.

He brushed his teeth and took a quick cold shower –the heater was still broken- and got out with his towel draping on his bare shoulder, shivering. He envied Azula's ability sometimes, if only for the fact that she would never be denied the luxury of hot water.

On his way out, he knocked on the girl's door again, still gaining no response. He dressed himself in a pair of cargo trousers and a plain dark shirt and got out with his bag ready after extracting his homework paper from under his dog, grimacing at the saliva stain courtesy to the husky. He made a stop by Azula's door again, knocking louder and twisting the unyielding doorknob. Azula opened it a little this time and glared through the small opening she allowed. "Go away. I'm calling sick today", she growled.

"Yeah, that's not for you to decide", Zuko replied dryly. "Besides, you've been calling sick too often lately, half of the school thinks that you're dying."

He turned on his heels and walked away from his sister's petulant raspberry. Zuko descended the stairs and walked into a cozy dining room where the rest of his family was already having breakfast. His mother smiled and stood up, walking to the stove to fetch more scrambled eggs while his father, resplendent in his suit, his raven hair oiled and combed neatly, was reading a newspaper, barely registering his arrival.

Azula arrived a minute later, still in her red nightrobe and dragging her feet like she was half dead. She walked past her mother and sat at the empty seat between Zuko and Ozai; that was her seat, always.

"Daddy, can I call in sick today?" she whined.

"Of course", Ozai muttered, not looking up from his reading.

"No…" Ursa drawled as she arrived with her frying pan and spatula. "Azula, you know that you've almost exceeded the absence tolerance. Do you want to be held back a year?"

"I'll risk it", the girl narrowed her eyes at Ursa, snapping her fingers and conjuring a small flame on her thumb to light the cigarette Ozai picked from his pack and put in his mouth; the man blew the tiny blue flame off and flicked the girl on the forehead.

"No abilities in the house", he chided only to have his cigarette snatched from his mouth and his forehead flicked by his wife.

"No smoking in the house", the woman said, throwing the cigarette on the table. Turning to Azula, she commanded. "Eat your breakfast and you are going to school today. And chin up, it's your birthday tomorrow."

Groaning, Azula let her forehead meet the table.

-W-A-T-E-R-

_(Republic City, East Sentries Military Base – the Waters' Residence; Tuesday, 23 July 2013, 06:45 AM) _

Katara wrapped the three thick stacks of meatloaf sandwiches and put two of them in two different paper bags and the last one in a lunchbox. The lunchbox was Sokka's and bringing papers, or any burnable material to his lab was like bringing firewood to a luau; literally.

The blue-eyed girl picked up her school bag and her and Sokka's lunch, and made her way to the front door, walking past the living room where a disheveled form of Navy Commander Hakoda was snoring on the couch. Katara averted her glance as if the very sight of her father hurt her and numbed her way to the door, closing the door behind her with great care and little noise regardless.

She winced at the sunlight and tugged on the strap of her blue bag, one hand tracing the carving on the choker she was wearing around her neck, her mother's betrothal necklace; she did that every morning she got out of the house, almost as a form of a prayer.

A distraction from her sad morning contemplation arrived in the form of a dark military Humvee pulling up in front of her house; a tall blue-eyed tanned-skinned man with shoulder-length wolftailed hair of the Water Tribe stepped out in his Republic City Navy gray uniform with blue outline. He grinned widely and Katara chuckled as she stepped into his quick hug.

"So, Katara", he said. "What do you say we make you look cool by having you arrive at school in a military Humvee?" he said, putting on his shades with a flair.

"No, thanks Bato", Katara said dryly, holding a smile. "I'm already unpopular as it is."

Bato laughed. "Your dad still in?"

"Yeah, go kick his butt", Katara smirked as Bato took off his hat and threw it to the front porch bench and rolled up his sleeves before he entered the house. She was already down the road and headed for a nearby bus stop when a ruckus emerged from her house, filled with the sound of shifting furniture, screaming of men, and the likes; the average morning at the Waters' house.

Her bus arrived late and by the time that it did, Katara had already read through half of the chapter in his biology book regarding metagene mutation. She read through the latter half on the way to school and, as she descended to the bus stop in across the street from her school, the United Nations Academy, someone passed her a flyer that set bile to her mouth.

_Firma Chemistry_

_The power of metagene at your disposal_

There were two cartoon pictures of man in the background with an arrow between them; one was lanky and meek wearing nerd glasses and the other was the same man with the same nerd glasses but with buffed up body that made him look like a pro wrestler. There were also some contact information and some discount and prices but Katara simply crumpled it in her hand and dropped it on the sidewalk as she crossed the road.

A silver SUV pulled out at the spot and a short small kid with gray eyes and short spiky hair hugged the old bald man on the wheel. The small thin boy was wearing a baggy long-sleeved shirt of bright yellow, with a picture of a banana on the back, and a cap despite the warm weather outside. The cuffs were seemingly too wide for his thin wrist and they sagged down halfway over his hands, hiding his arrow tattoos that ran along the length of his arms.

"Good luck on your first day, Aang", the old man said, patting the boy's back.

"Thanks, Gyatso", Aang smiled widely as he grabbed his bag and energetically stepped down. With a wave, Gyatso left and Aang, standing in front of a teashop across the street from the gray and moss green building that was the Academy, took a big sniff of the morning air before he bent down and picked up the crumpled paper someone (Katara) had left littering the ground and crossed the street.

…without looking right and left first.

He yelped and jumped back as a red beat-up convertible nearly hit him. The driver, a boy a few years older than him, with messy dark hair, pale skin, and striking amber eyes, sitting beside a girl who looked alike enough to be his sister, honked loudly and glared at him. Of the other two passengers; the girl in black outfit and hair in twin buns looked unfazed while the other girl, the one with braided brown hair and clad in a pink tank top, strangely, smiled brightly.

"Sorry", Aang grinned awkwardly and walked away fast from the spot.

Zuko sighed and drove the car into the parking lot in front of the teashop across the street and got out; a large potbellied old man inside the teashop smiled and waved at them while he flipped the open sign. Zuko gave a small smile and waved back while Azula did not even show any sign of noticing as she left the spot and headed for the school without a word, leaving Ty Lee, Mai, and Zuko, the latter two were holding hands, to catch up with her.

-A-I-R-

_(Republic City, Tosako – the United Nations Academy; Tuesday, 23 July 2013, 08:15 AM) _

Aang nervously knocked on the blue painted door of the classroom and opened it. He stepped into the room filled with kids his age. Flashing an awkward smile, he swallowed the lump in his throat and seated himself in one of the empty front rows that everyone seemed to be avoiding naturally.

A girl in a light green sweater sit at his left, with an empty table between them and Aang felt drawn to her; to her porcelain skin and dark hair up in low pigtails, of her feet shuffling on the floor, out of her flip-flops, and her eyes that was the color of white jade, almost white with greenish mist on it. It took Aang a minute to notice the cane propped on her chair and that she was blind.

Shaking his head, Aang returned his attention to the front of the class, a chalkboard with the large artistic writing of 'WELCOME' and a smiley face drawn on it. Gyatso had warned him that staring was rude and he had to reign in his ability.

It was fortunate that the door was opened and in walked five students, one of which Aang recognized instantly; the girl in dark hoodie who was riding shotgun in the car that nearly hit him earlier. Aang felt himself slide down in his chair and attempted to look small as the girl broke away from the pack and dragged her feet to the seat at the back of the classroom. One of the girls, the one in pink, tried to grab the amber-eyed girl's dark hoodie but failed and it was awkward as the class was quiet and the only sound they heard was the amber-eyed girl's sneakers shuffling on the floor and the scratching of the chair she pulled as she sat down and collapsed on the table with her long raven hair that was not tied into her partial ponytail fanning out around her head on the table.

The girl in pink cleared her throat, drawing attention back to the front of the class. "Hi! Welcome to the United Nations Academy", she greeted with a smile as bright as the early summer sunshine cascading upon her. "We are the welcoming committee; I'm Ty Lee, this is Mai", she gestured to the tall girl who remained as impassive as ever. "And this is Suki…" the girl with shoulder-length auburn hair, ivory skin, and violet eyes waved a little and smiled. "And that's Katara", Ty Lee gestured last at the girl who Aang noticed the most, probably since she had a tanned skin and a pair of ocean blue eyes, both features that none of the welcoming committee possessed.

"And that's Azula", Ty Lee gestured at the amber-eyed girl who looked like she was sleeping on the table. "Anyway, as you are aware, we are in the last week before summer vacation and we invite you to experience our school before you formally join us, which, by the way would be the smartest decision you'd ever make in your life."

The class laughed at the joke.

"So, if you have any question about anything, feel free to ask anyone who are wearing this badge", Ty Lee and the rest of the welcoming committee, minus Azula, took out similar looking badges of bright yellow, bearing the picture of the school emblem –an open book with a floating flame on top with the background of a mountain, standing a top three wavy lines- and put them on.

"Every members of the students council and teaching staff would wear these badges until the summer vacation and in the first week after the vacation", Suki resumed. "Today, we will have a tour of the school and tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, you will be having a special schedule and join some normal classes; you know, to get your feet wet", she concluded.

"And if you have some questions later or if you want to ask about clubs or facilities, feel free to ask", Ty Lee gestured them to get up and was hoping in vain that the noise of the shuffling chairs would wake Azula up. "Um… Azula…?"

No response.

"Azula~"

There was a faint grunt.

"Azula!"

"WHAT?!"

"We're going now", Ty Lee fought the urge to stomp her feet like a little child.

"Oh, have fun", Azula said dryly before she collapsed back to the table.

Smiling awkwardly at the new students, Ty Lee weaved through the class to Azula and poked a ticklish spot on the latter's waist, sending her yelping self to the floor. She pulled the raven-haired girl up and held her by the arms firmly. "Please, follow Mai out", Ty Lee said, grinning while she dragged the reluctant Azula out after the group.

-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Tuesday, 23 July 2013, 11:03 AM) _

Mako burst into the Jasmine Dragon and nearly tripped, drawing eyes everywhere. Iroh, sipping tea in a porcelain cup shook his head from behind the counter. Straightening up, Mako walked towards the old man and apologized for being late before he went through the door marked 'personnel only', just before a group of teenagers from the Academy across the street entered the teashop, led by Ty Lee who was still holding on to Azula; after the latter's third failed attempt to escape, Ty Lee decided that it would be safer that way.

"Aaaand here we have the Jasmine Dragon", Ty Lee announced proudly as the students seated themselves. "This isn't really part of our tour but Uncle Iroh always offers free drinks during one of these occasions, so…"

"And welcome to the Jasmine Dragon", Uncle Iroh, a potbellied short man with a small goatee approached, wearing the shop uniform of dark green shirt with bright yellow outline, and a dark apron with the cartoony picture of a red dragon holding a jasmine and winking. "And welcome to the school as well. What would you all like to drink? It's on the house."

"Latte, extra sugar", Azula wasted no time to say.

"Oh, you break my heart", Iroh pouted.

"Good", Azula folded her arms on the table and buried her face on it.

Iroh chuckled and pushed her hair off her face and tucked it behind her ear. "Aren't you excited about your birthday tomorrow?"

"No. Should I? I only get older, yippee", Azula mumbled, sitting up and rubbing her eyes. "What are you giving me this year?"

"Who knows?" Iroh shrugged and smiled at the table. "And you are all invited to the party. We're having it here."

"Don't invite strangers to my party", Azula warned.

Iroh simply laughed and grabbed the girl's arm. "Come, help me bring the drinks."

"Why? Why should I? You can just ask one of your minions", Azula whined and yet she let Iroh drag her to her feet and walked to the counter with the old man, hugging his arm.

"You're still so spoiled", Iroh commented.

"Am not", Azula argued. "By the way", Azula raised her voice and turned a little as her uncle dragged her to the counter. "As much as I love to watch the oblivious train, you guys are forgetting something important: introduction."

Ty Lee frowned and started. "Wha—", but it hit her. They did introduce themselves, to be fair, but they had forgotten to ask the students to introduce themselves to the committee and to each other.

"I didn't really forget; just didn't care", Mai sighed, inspecting her dark painted nails. "Well, you're _you_", she directed at the pouting Ty Lee and turned to the other two committee members. "What are your excuses?"

Katara and Suki, sitting by each other's side around the large round table, turned to each other and blushed. Katara admitted that she was… well, kinda pissed by the flyer she got about the metagene device, and Suki, who was a relatively new student herself, having transferred here last semester, was kinda nervous about the tour, having been one of those kids not so long ago herself.

"You", Mai turned her gaze to Aang. "Introduce yourself."

"Umm… I'm Aang", the boy gulped.

"You."

"I'm Lee."

"Oh, great another one. Would any other Lees please kindly raise their hands?"

Five of the twenty new students raised their hands.

"Lovely. You", Mai pointed at the boy after Lee, the first one.

And it went on until Mai's pointing finger met the blind girl sitting on Aang's other side.

The girl did not answer and Aang covertly bumped his knee lightly on her leg.

"I'm Toph", the girl took the hint.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you all", Ty Lee smiled at them collectively.

"One more thing", Azula arrived with a tray laden with cookies, with Iroh bearing a tray of drinks in each hand. "We may have a compulsory don't ask and voluntary don't tell policy regarding metahuman but if you're a metahuman or using a metagene device for medical reasons, you must report to the Student Advisor."

Katara quickly put her cup of hot black tea down as soon as she noticed the tea she had in her mouth had turned to ice.

"Yeah, and don't worry about Mrs. Kwan. She might be a bit stiff but she's really nice", Ty Lee chirped. "And she really helped me too. I'm a metahuman", she ignored the soft gasp that few newcomers failed to suppress. "Our school values the confidentiality. We just need to know if, you know, your abilities might be a safety risk or not. Like last time, we had a guy who can spit fire when he eats something spicy—"

The table laughed.

"—and so, the school made sure that the lunch lady doesn't give him any spicy food", Ty Lee shrugged.

"The school cares", Suki added with a winning smile.

Azula snorted; Katara kicked her under the table.

The lunch went on as quaintly as it could with Ty Lee around and soon the new students were ushered back to the school by Suki and Ty Lee for a brief meeting with a supervising teacher before they were allowed to go home. Mai was playing with her phone while Katara was watching the TV mounted on the wall behind the counter and Azula was staring absentmindedly with her half-lidded eyes at her uncle who was busy checking on some teapots on the counter.

Uncle Iroh prided himself in his selection of natural tea and had a set of stoves fixed on the counter where he brewed at least four different pots at any given times. He still served some of the down-to-earth kind that came with milk and sugar that youngsters preferred but his brewed tea was famous.

Katara tapping Azula's elbow broke the latter of her daydream. The blue-eyed girl pointed at the TV.

"The Blue Spirit", she said at the news that reported about how the Blue Spirit foiled an attempt of robbery at a bank.

"—_took down three armed robbers—oh, wait! There he is!"_ the reporter, a lady with wavy brown hair pointed up; the camera turned around and barely captured the flash of dark as the Blue Spirit leaped through the gap between two tall buildings and disappeared. _"Did you get that?!"_

"It's not far from here", Katara commented. "It's only like a few blocks away."

Azula grunted and shrugged. She got up and took off her black hoodie, revealing the red short-sleeved shirt she was wearing underneath, and staggered to the counter clumsily, nearly running into Mako who was busy clearing a table. As she arrived at the red marble counter, she pushed herself up and leaned forward, groping for something, and pulled a big white pillow from underneath the counter. She walked back to their table, not even noticing Mako's raised brow, and slumped on the table again with the pillow underneath her.

Zuko entered around that time, looking sour with his hands in his pockets. He sat at their table and kissed Mai on the cheek as a greeting.

"Ready?" he asked Katara.

"Sure", Katara said, gulping the last of her drink. "I'm just gonna have to go back and get my stuff for five minutes."

"Are you going to Sokka's?" Azula asked, rising a bit from her pillow. "Can I come too? I wanna come too. I'm in the mood to play with something that explodes."

"Baby cousin!" somebody shouted from the door, a man of about twenty wearing leather jacket and jeans, with long hair tied into a ponytail, amber eyes that smiled along with his wide grin, and stubble around his mouth. He was tall and muscularly wide and had a childish glint in his eyes.

Azula whined and reluctantly got up, letting the man hugged her and squeezed her in his arms.

"Happy birthday!" he grinned. "Finally! One more years to the day when I can bring you to watch some R-rated movies with me!"

"It's not my birthday yet, dum-dum", Azula grumbled, pushing the man twice her size away. "Grammy said wishing someone an early birthday is like wishing someone an early death. Do you want me to die quickly?" she blinked several times, looking sad.

"N-no, I—"

"*sniff*…"

Lu Ten grimaced and his shoulders slumped at the sight of his baby cousin's puppy dog eyes. "Oh, crickey", he sighed. "Fine. What do you want?"

"Movie, this weekend, caramel popcorn and soda, big ones", Azula demanded.

Lu Ten shook his head in disbelief but gave way to a smile. "Okay."

"Yay", Azula smirked as she hugged her cousin one more time. "You're like a brother I've never had."

"Excuse me?" Zuko frowned.

"Shut up, Zuzu. You never take me to movies anymore", Azula poked her tongue at him.

"Alright, I'm back", Katara announced, bringing a lunchbox with her.

"I didn't even notice you were gone", Azula frowned; the Phoenix in her felt a little irked that she did not notice that.

"Come on", Katara said dryly, tugging on Azula's arm.

"I'm being kidnapped", Azula said to Lu Ten with a flat face as she grabbed her hoodie and let Katara drag her out with Zuko leading the way.

Mai stayed behind and was stone-faced at Lu Ten's attempt of a friendly smile.

Mako, refilling tea cans with Iroh behind the counter, let a little smile slip.

"You know, young man", Iroh started without looking up from his teapot. "If you manage your time well, you can attend school and still work here. I can make sure you will always get a shift."

"It's time that I don't have a lot of, Mr. Kai", Mako replied. "Besides, I don't need to go to high school. I can count, I can read and write. That's enough for me."

"But, apparently, you do not think it's enough for your little brother", Iroh countered slyly. "Mako", he said quickly before Mako could say anything. "If you change your mind, come and talk to me."

Mako swallowed the lump in his throat. "Yes, sir."

-W-A-T-E-R-

_(Republic City; Wang Lung Heights – United Nations University;_ _Tuesday, 23 July 2013, 12:13 PM)_

Sokka's dream of making out with girls in a pool filled with bacon was snapped by the sound of something being put on the table. He groggily woke up, wiping drool with the sleeve of his lab coat, and entered a nightmare.

"KATARA!"

Katara yelped and jumped a little, spilling some neatly stacked paper and books in her arms.

"What the—", Sokka looked around his lab in horror; his beautiful two chamber lab; a room fitted with computers and research equipment and a separate room where he tested his work, with a clear bullet-resistant glass between them… and a vending machine at the corner. "Did you… did you clean my lab?! You _animal_!"

"Me?!" Katara gasped offendedly. "_You_ are the one who lives in this… this… _pig sty_!"

"How am I gonna find anything anymore?!"

"How can you even find anything in this mess?!"

As the two Waters sibling bickered, Azula walked in, playing Angry Bird on her phone while she walked. "Hey, guys, sorry I'm late. I got lost on my way to the bathroom and then there's an undergrad student who hit on me and so I kicked his bal… aaarrgh…" her amber eyes widened in horror as she scanned the neat room; they darted to Sokka, Katara and her stacks of books and papers in her arms, the room, and Katara again. "You cleaned a _lab_?! You _barbarian_!"

Sokka made a gesture that said '_see_!'. Katara exasperated and slammed her stack on the nearby table before plopping down on the couch Sokka was sleeping on and pouted.

And, while Sokka, grumbling and picking on his stacks of papers, moved to his computer, the main one, located in the middle of his long table, surrounded by several smaller screens. He typed in several commands into the computer and locked it.

Azula scooched over and sprayed disinfectant all over the keyboard before she typed and broke the encryption, much to Sokka's dismay.

"Ha ha~", she gloated. "I win."

Grumbling Sokka gave up his lunchbox.

"Did you just steal my brother's lunch?" Katara accused.

"No, I won it fair and square", Azula said, biting into the meatloaf sandwich; turning to Sokka, she said. "I wanna play with something that can explode."

"I'm out of those, but…" with a huge grin, Sokka strode to his desk and took an object that looked like a flat curved stick bearing the color of whitish blue. "…my new invention."

Azula took it, eyed the blue-eyed wolftailed boy dryly, and chewed her food with no hurry at all. "A boomerang?"

"It's not a boomerang", Sokka huffed. "It's a blunt projectile armed with heat and print recognition and it can fly back to you even if it hits something."

"So, a boomerang", Azula restated, clearing her throat. She threw it to the wall where it bounced with a loud thud, fell to the ground but gained altitude midway like an airplane that had just suffered a quick stall, and spun back to her direction. It ended up hitting Sokka on the forehead. "How is it not a boomerang?"

"It needs a little adjustment, I admit", Sokka said, nursing his head. "But, with this, I'm sure I'll beat Lu Ten at this semester's expo. You're on my side, right?"

Azula sucked her teeth. "Well, let's see: the insane cousin of mine versus the insane brother of Katara. Hmm… I think I'll stick to my usual gambit", she stood up and stretched a bit. "I support he who showers me with most gifts."

"You shouldn't encourage this childishness", Katara chided, feeling a little lost at what to do since she was not allowed to tidy up the place.

"Well, I'll share the loot with you", Azula exasperated.

Katara narrowed her eyes.

"Anyway, can I have that?" Azula grinned, pointing at the high tech boomerang. "It's my turn to play with Avi this Saturday and he needs a new chew toy."

"No!" Sokka held his boomerang back like it was a precious baby. "I made this with University money. I can't just give this away!"

Azula pulled out her phone and accessed something in it. "I'll trade you this picture of Suki in bikini."

Katara frowned and Sokka blushed; the latter was leering awkwardly at the former and said. "W-why would I want anything like that?!"

-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-

_(Republic City; Wang Lung Heights – United Nations University;_ _Tuesday, 23 July 2013, 12:13 PM)_

Korra almost dropped her books when she missed a step. A petite girl in a dark hoodie and a pair of dark capri pants and red sneakers (Azula) walked past her without looking up from the cellphone she was playing with and nearly ran into her; Korra caught the sound of Angry Birds. Holding in her temper for such rudeness, the blue-eyed girl resumed her walk to the cafeteria.

The University boasted the largest cafeteria of any educational establishment in the Four Nations. The place took up one whole two-storey building, designed in a circular shape, and surrounded by numerous outdoor tables. The interior was vast and had hardwood floor, and it had several stands with food from all nations and cultures. The United Nations University had the largest number of international students and it made them fell welcomed.

Korra never understood it but she too, from time to time, missed Southern Water Tribe's seaweed noodle.

She had just sat down on her chair with her bowl of noodle when the whole building shook and she spilled her noodle on the table. Gritting her teeth, she turned to the direction of the laughter at the other side of the room where a boy was surrounded by several other idiots; he was stomping on the ground, causing slight tremor, and Korra noticed the bracelet he wore on his wrist: silver with a glowing green circle, like a crystal or something. A metadevice.

Losing her appetite, she picked up her wet books and exited the room, and waited until she was alone in the nearby bathroom before she used her ability to extract the broth from her books and dumped it in the toilet.

Azula flushed the toilet as she was done and came out from the stall next to Korra's and joined Katara who was already at the mirror, checking her reflection.

"You should try wearing some makeup", Katara suggested.

"Why? You're not wearing any", Azula quipped, washing her hands. "And why would I need to wear any?"

Katara simply shrugged. True, she realized how effortlessly beautiful Azula was, despite her boyish choice of clothing, and Katara was one of the few witnesses of the time when Ursa put Azula in a dress and makeup to attend a formal party at the base –Ozai's company worked with the military- and the sight of the amber-eyed girl all primped up had been haunting Katara ever since. And they were eleven at the time!

And it was true that Azula was quite popular with boys… at first. Ozai sort of ruined that by arriving in PTA meetings and any school events that require or allow parents participation in a convoy of black sedans, guarded by several men in black; plus Azula's already unique personality, boys were intimidated by her. There were rumors about how a boy once asked Azula out on a date and he went missing and was never heard of ever since.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Azula asked as she dried her hands.

"Um… nothing", Katara muttered, turning off the faucet.

Both were _this_ close to using their abilities to dry their hands.

They walked out of the bathroom and headed to the parking lot. Azula pulled out the whitish blue boomerang Sokka had shown them in his lab earlier from her sling bag and smirked as she gave it a try and threw it lightly.

"Please tell me you didn't steal that", Katara exasperated.

"I didn't steal this", Azula said, catching the boomerang as it flew back.

"Did you?"

"No", Azula huffed. "I traded for this fair and square."

"…Did you…?" Katara asked flatly.

"Well, not really", Azula smirked the way only she could. "I gave her the picture, yes, but Suki was five in it."

"AZULAA!" it echoed across the campus all the way from Sokka's lab.

"Walk away, walk away~" Azula sang as she grabbed Katara's arm and walked faster.

**-F-I-R-E-**

The eighteen years old boy opened his bright amber eyes as he woke up from his sleep. His room was dark and the little sunlight shining through the cracks in the windows did little to shed light in his room but he preferred it that way. Slowly getting up, he turned and put his feet on the floor, rubbing his head and pushing his jet black curtained hair off his face. He closed his eyes and breathed in calmly.

_(Fire Nation; Capital City – Lin Family Estate; Tuesday, 23 July 2013, 12:34 PM)_

He snickered softly and plopped back onto the bed, smiling faintly.

"I hope I can make it to your birthday", he whispered. "Princess…"

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – United Nations Academy; Tuesday, 23 July 2013, 12:34 PM) _

Bolin was just about to close his locker when three laughing children rammed into him and hugged his waist.

"Hey, kids", he grinned at the three. "Ready to go home?"

"Ooh, ooh, ooh! Can we go and get some ice cream first?" Ikki jumped up and down, with a raised hand.

"Um… yeah, the last time this happened, your dad got quite angry with me", Bolin drawled. "Something about Meelo and sugar high?"

"Oh, please, please, please! Just this once!" Meelo begged, gripping Bolin's pants.

The large teenager sighed. "Okay… fine. But, only at the Jasmine Dragon. Because Mako's there. And I'm broke."

The kids giggled and Bolin straightened up like a soldier. "Alright, men!" he called. "The mission is simple: Ikki and Meelo beg incessantly while Jinora and I use our sad eyes until Mako pays for our ice cream. Any question?"

"Sir, no, sir!" Meelo played along and saluted. Ikki giggled while Jinora watched them with a bored expression.

"Right, then", Bolin grabbed the younger ones by the waist and ran ahead. "Off we go!"

Jinora followed without a word.

Ty Lee and Suki rounded the corner and headed to the nearby empty classroom where the students were waiting after a briefing from Mrs. Kwan.

"Well, today was fun", Ty Lee smiled as she pushed the door open. "Well, guys", she addressed the new students. "I hope today has been fun for you. We still have class until three but you guys are free to go home."

Toph was the first to stand up and Aang, still unsure as to why he did, stood up next and followed the blind girl out, sending a guilty smile to Ty Lee and Suki. He did not know why but he decided to follow the girl out of the school establishment and into the city, all the while trying to keep his power at bay. Aang was an empath and his ability was… well, confusing. It felt almost like a déjà vu when it happened, when he met a person who triggered his ability. He just felt compelled to do something and now he felt compelled to follow this blind girl.

As they crossed at a red light, Toph turned around suddenly and startled Aang; a car honking at Aang since he kinda stopped a few feet away from the sidewalk startled him a second time.

"Sorry", Aang waved at the driver and leaped to the sidewalk.

"Kinda light on your feet, Twinkle Toes", Toph said. "Why are you following me?"

"I… uh…" Aang rubbed the back of his head. "Well, it's… um… hi, I'm Aang", he tried, grinning and extending a hand.

Toph did not take it.

"Well", Aang let his hand fell. "Uh, see you tomorrow."

"Wait", Toph held out her cane and barred the gray-eyed kid's flight. "I just got here from Gaoling. I don't know my way around yet."

"Um… okay", Aang drawled, unsure about what to say.

"Maybe you can help me", Toph muttered. "I need you to take me somewhere."

"Well, sure", Aang nodded and followed the girl as she resumed walking. "Um, you do know that it's a bad idea to ask strangers to take you somewhere, right?"

Toph slugged him in the arm.


	3. Chapter 2 - New Players

**Chapter 2 – New Players**

Disclaimer: I own nothing

* * *

><p>The Blue Spirit stalked the night, leaping from one rooftop to another.<p>

_(Republic City, Dragon Flats Borough – Fernwood Park; Tuesday, 23 July 2013, 11:05 PM)_

The delinquents were burning the statue of the Mayor, dancing and shouting around the bonfire like maniacs, with some rap music blaring from their boomboxes. Some were waving guns that they fired to the sky. One gangster, a man of average built, clad in baggy jacket and jeans and a cap he wore slanted, fired at the Mayor's nose and the crowd cheered as they directed all their firepower at the statue, chipping away the marble with bullets.

The flames on the statue flared suddenly, getting more and more violent, until it finally drew the attentions of the thugs and they stopped and marveled at the swirling flame tornado in silence. The flame turned blue and soared higher before it died down and three figures swooped in and started kicking butts.

Phoenix soared high with the burst of flame from her feet and landed in a crouch, directly beneath the gun that was fired at her; she grabbed the wrist of the gunner and punched a stream of fire from her other hand at the gunner's gut, sending him flying ten feet away.

Acro weaved through the crowd like an acrobat, twirling and summersaulting, miraculously avoiding bullets; she landed low delivered lighting fast jabs at the torso of a nearby gangster, sparking blue electric from her knuckles each time she made contact.

Stealth was cornered by a semi-circle of gangsters and she took small measured steps back until she fell on the shadow of a large oak tree behind her, melting herself into the shadow. The gangsters and their guns waited and one of them gulped loudly even from such distance the Blue Spirit noticed his Adam's apple shifting. Then, out of nowhere, knives flew and darted themselves on the screaming thugs, scoring hits on their joints –shoulders, knees, thighs-, sending them all to the ground, writhing and hurting.

The Blue Spirit watched the event in silence up on the roof across the street.

A footfall ever so slightly, he caught from behind him; the Blue Spirit turned and drew his blades strapped on his back at the same time, stance ready as he faced the smirking dark hooded robed man. The Blue Spirit took a few seconds before he eased up and relaxed his stance, sheathing his blades back and turning back to the battle as the hooded man joined him in watching the girls taking care of the last of the thugs.

"Are you not joining them?" the hooded man asked, almost sounded gleeful, not using his voice masking device.

The Blue Spirit, of course, did not say anything back.

Phoenix delivered a double leg sweeps, sending low arcs of blue flame that tripped her opponents and burnt them enough to cause pain that stopped them from fighting. An opponent dashed from behind her with a knife ready but Phoenix did not even react since she knew that Acro would jump in and interfere; and that Acro did as she pounced at the thug's back and jabbed ten times. Phoenix kinda liked the chirpy sound of the taser Acro's punches made. It reminded her of potato chips.

**-F-I-R-E-**

**Heroes of Republic City**

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Goldenbell – the Kais' Residence; Wednesday, 24 July 2013, 01:34 AM)_

Azula opened the fridge and leaned down, looking for something to eat and found nothing that struck her fancy. She closed it and started rummaging cabinet above the wall counter where they put the microwave and toaster for cereals.

"Azula?" a voice called from behind her and the light was turned on.

Azula cursed mentally. "Hi, Mom", she grumbled, not turning around, tiptoeing and trying to reach the box of Ginger Flakes in the frigging tall cabinet.

"Azula", Ursa came closer. "Cereal in the middle of the night", she chided.

"What? I'm hungry", Azula stretched higher, grazing the box with her fingers. "I don't have the obligation to starve myself. I'm not a model."

"Here", Ursa reached up, having the tall gene like her husband that skipped Azula over (Azula and Iroh were the only ones who inherited the short gene of Iroh's mother), and closed the cabinet. "If you're hungry, let me fix something up for you."

Grumbling, Azula moved to the stool around the kitchen counter and rested her head on her folded arms while her mother moved to the fridge and took out a bowl of last dinner leftover stew. Soon, the kitchen was filled with the smell of beef stew simmering on the pot and the sound of the fan sucking in the smoke.

Azula sat there in silence, sulking, biting the inside of her lip. Ursa came five minutes later with a bowl of brown stew. "Bread", Azula said curtly as she picked up her spoon.

Ursa sighed fondly and returned with a plate of sliced breakfast bread. She sat down and watched her daughter eat… like a boy, with her large gulp and stuffing two or more spoonful of stew into her mouth that was already filled with bread. Wow… even Zuko had a more civilized table manner.

The woman tucked the girl's hair behind her ear and Azula twitched at the touch. She shot her mother an annoyed look but could not force herself to move from the woman's touch.

"Azula", Ursa started patiently. "Have you been using your ability?" because she knew that Azula's ability ate up a lot of calories and she had not missed how Azula's sneaking into the kitchen in the middle of the night for snacks and coming home from school with bags of chips had been an everyday occurrence.

Azula did not show any sign of being perturbed by her mother's question. "You said it like it's a bad thing to be a metahuman."

"I didn't say it like that", Ursa said softly, ignoring the jolt in her stomach. "I just want you to be careful."

Azula continued eating in silence. "I'm fine", she said finally as she scooped the last of her stew.

Ursa opened her mouth but words could not come out. She just watched her daughter drink her glass of water and dab her mouth with a napkin before she got up and left. As Azula reached the stairs, Ursa forced her voice out. "Azula", she called, gasped actually; Azula stopped but did not turn back. "Happy birthday and… I love you", she said with wavering voice and an ache in her heart that she could not explain.

Azula's jaw hardened as she made her way up to the second floor.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

"Some say metagene is a gift…"

…

"…some other say it is a curse…"

…

"…that metahumans are cursed existence, born with devils in them…"

…

"…but I say… they were wrong!"

"YEAH!"

"… I say we are special!"

"YEAH!"

"And I say… Welcome to the Pro-…Meta… Humans… TOURNAMENT!"

_(Republic City, Underground Pro-Metahumans Tournament; Wednesday, 24 July 2103, 01:45 AM)_

Light fell upon the dark circular ring where a man stood in his glossy training pants, bare-chested, and he looked fit. Skin slightly tanned, hair brown and straight, parted in the middle, eyes green, jaw and cheekbones defined.

More lights turned on and the whole view of the ring; a hexagonal ring with dark floor and red ropes around except for the two opposing sides of the ring, and the whole contraption stood twenty feet above a pool, and the announcer was standing in the middle with a hanging microphone in his hand.

"And noooow… the main event of tonight's matches… for the right to enter the Summer Fest Tournament, Team Battle Division!" the announcer called. "Introducing… the contenders of the Spring Slammer who had just avenged their lost on the ones who cost them their place in the Slammer… the Golden Temple Tigerdillos!"

A moving platform rose from the water, from the small opening where fighters entered, carrying three men in padded body armors and head protectors.

"Aaaanndd…" the announcer paused for a dramatic effect. "…a newcomer who shock everyone with their elementals manipulation and strength… the Fire Ferrets!"

Mako stepped forward first, Bolin was next, waving to the crowd, and Korra cracked her knuckle.

"Let the match… begiiiiiin!" the announcer leaped off the ring and soared high to the box where the side announcer was.

Overhead, on the big screen, a line separated the shuffling portraits of the teams; the screen blinked and came back with the matchup. Mako would go first, followed by Korra, and Bolin.

Mako stepped into the middle of the ring while Korra and Bolin took their position behind the ropes, one on each side. The two fighters moved and stared down at each other, waiting for the bell.

The bell rang once…

The Tigerdillo and Mako leaped backward and Mako wasted no time to send a barrage of flames from his fists and kicks; the Tigerdillo put up a force field and advanced step by step under Mako's flame. He broke the shield in between the interval of the flames and lunged forward, aiming for Mako's midsection. Smirking, Mako spun and, like a matador, let the Tigerdillo rushed past him; he added a fire kick at the back of the Tigerdillo to help smoothen his way out of the ring.

The crowd cheered and the portrait of the downed Tigerdillo on the screen blackened.

Grinning, Mako moved to the side and traded places with Korra.

The bell rang and Korra's onslaught of water blasts from the pool below the ring ended the match and blasted the Tigerdillo off the ring before he could even show his power; that earned her the almost fastest knock out record of 3.56 seconds, one second something shy from the still standing record.

Korra whooped loudly and bounced her way to Bolin. The boy took his sweet time getting to the middle, and took his stance a fraction second too long after the bell rang. Bolin was blasted by a wave of light energy and landed on his back, skidding and almost falling off the edge of the ring.

"Get up, Bo!" Mako shouted.

Bolin sprung to his feet and ducked low as a wave of energy flew to his direction. The Tigerdillo switched his spot and charged up another blast; Bolin took the opportunity to scrambled up and dashed ahead, charging for a close quarter.

The Tigerdillo shot a stream of light energy but Bolin charged through it and tackled the man down with his shoulder, sending him all the way to the edge of the ring. The Tigerdillo got up and charged another blast frantically but Bolin beat him to it, lifting the man off his feet with ease and throwing him to the water below.

"And a flawless victory for the Fire Ferrets!"

Mako and Korra joined Bolin in the ring. Bolin scooped them in a hug and lifted them off their feet. Groaning inwardly, Korra and Mako exchanged pained look as Bolin threw them a few feet to the air and caught them.

"Next time", Korra growled as Bolin caught them again and squeezed them together, not noticing the two's discomfort. "Fire your bother and get someone who has _any_ powers other than super strength."

**-A-I-R-**

_(Republic City, North Plain – the Storms' Residence; Wednesday, 24 July 2013, 02:43 AM)_

Gyatso put down his cup of tea on the nearby table and shifted the candle on it. He opened his old chest and smiled at his old Lotus uniform in it. His old hand traced softly on the fabric and old trained ears noticed the sound of pebble outside.

Aang tugged on to Toph's hand as they snuck into the compound filled with old junked cars, walking towards the large old retired airplane in the middle; weathered and green, covered with moss and vines, Gyatso Storms had lived here since his retirement and though Aang had been in an orphanage before Gyatso found him and they had travelled a lot in his earlier childhood, the airplane had always been a home.

"Wow…" Toph stopped in his trek as they reached the flat land in front of the compound, right before the maze of junked cars. "You live in an airplane? Cool!"

Aang grinned, trying not to stare too much at the girl whose dark hair was now in a short spiky pixie cut. It was strange when Toph asked him to bring her to a salon, and then across the city where they visited places and hit like six different ice creams stores -Toph liked ice cream-, and just when Aang started to think that it was a bad idea to indulge Toph in the first place, it was already ten and Toph had dragged him to the Underground Metahumans Tournament. Keywords: Underground…

Aang had never been so scared in his life, despite his adventurous side, but at least, Toph had paid for everything and Aang had no need to confess that he had only ten yuans to his name.

But… wait a minute…

"Uh… Toph?" Aang tugged on his collar a bit. "I thought you were blind."

"Oh", Toph smirked. "Well, I am", she retracted her cane and threw it to Aang. "I'm metahuman", she said, striding forward without hesitation.

"Wait", Aang frowned, catching up to her. "So, you can… uh… _see_?"

"More like sense", Toph snickered. "I see with my feet", she explained. "I can feel vibration around me."

"Wow", Aang commented. "Do you always have this ability?"

"Well, maybe, I don't know", Toph shrugged. "I noticed this when my parents called in some experts to teach me how to use echolocation devices", she said. "Then, one day, I realized that I don't need them at all."

"That's amazing", Aang said earnestly. "Um, since you told me that, I should tell you this; I have abilities too."

"You do?" Toph laughed. "And what's that? Because it's certainly not stealth. Your Toes are not that Twinkly", she blurted out laughing. "Get it? Twinkle Toes."

Aang groaned as they made their way to the airplane.

"So, what's your power?" Toph asked as her laughter died down.

"I'm kinda hoping immortality; my dad's gonna kill me", Aang gulped, so not looking forward to explaining to Gyatso why he was home at two in the morning with a girl he had just met. "Well, I kinda get this feeling, you know, when I saw you."

"Whoa, Twinkles", Toph shoved a hand a few inches to the side of Aang's face. "Look, you're great and all, but we've just met."

"N-no, no!" Aang spluttered, getting hot around the cheeks. "It's not that. It's not funny!" he almost yelled at Toph who was laughing too hard.

"Okay", Toph's laughter died down and she wiped her teary eyes. "Okay, you have feelings; you mean like an empath?"

"Yeah", Aang turned to the distant barking of a dog and inwardly cringed.

"Is that all you can do?" Toph asked, picking on her nose. Aang left for a fraction of second, leaving nothing but a blurry yellow as he supersped ahead to intercept Appa before the giant mastiff could jump on Toph and him, and returned before Toph suspected anything, grinning awkwardly.

"Uh… yeah", Aang did not know why he lied. "That's the only big thing…"

"Oh, and um…" Toph smiled quaintly. "I think your dad's awake."

Aang groaned and facepalmed.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Dragon Flats Borough; Wednesday, 24 July 2013, 03:02 AM)_

The Blue Spirit kicked the rushing thug on the face. The dark robed figure descended from nowhere, making no sound as he made contact with the ground, his robe fluttering, and he threw several knives at the incoming group, scoring hits on all but two; one got lucky and evaded in time, the other punched the flying knife away and roared as he sped ahead.

The dark figure lunged ahead, keeping low like a wolf lunging at a prey. The large muscular thug punched downward but the dark figure swerved and dashed past the thug to get to the one behind him, taking the startled baddie down in one strike. The Blue Spirit followed up with a mean punch on the large thug's face.

The thug staggered backward and the hooded man leg-swept him down; the Blue Spirit pounced at him for good measure, landing on the thug's gut.

"So", the hooded figure started, getting up while the Blue Spirit fought another thug. "You really want to recruit the girls to your side?"

The Blue Spirit spin-kicked a thug on the face and froze momentarily as another thug a distance away aimed a semi-automatic at him; the hooded figure drew a futuristic looking black gun and fired a bolt of red energy at the thug's gun and another at his chest.

"Plasma bolt", the hooded figure said. "Leaves no slugs, nothing to trace back", he could feel the Blue Spirit's condescending look behind his mask. "What? I set it to stun."

The Blue Spirit straightened up and, as he was about to break his code of silence, a group of armed thugs appeared from the corner of the street.

A sedan with blaring siren skidded and drifted into the scene from the turn and two cops in casual clothes dropped down, screaming. "Republic City Police! Hands in the air", and it was met by a volley of bullets. The two policemen dove behind their car and one of them noticed the two vigilantes behind them. "Hey, Jee! Look!"

The two cops turned to the spot where the Blue Spirit and his companion were no longer; Jee scowled and smacked Chit Sang upside the head. "This' no time for games", he growled as he returned fire with his handgun.

The two cops were completely outgunned as most of the thugs employed submachine guns. They ducked back behind their car, evading the bullets. Jee scrambled to get the radio from inside the car and called for help. "HQ! This is Sergeant Jee! Dragon Flats Borough, armed gangbangers! Requesting backup!"

"Jee… Jee!"

"WHAT?!"

Chit Sang simply pointed at the direction of the thugs where a puff of thick smoke and the grunting sound of people and occasional gunshots. The two cops turned to each other and Chit Sang shrugged. As the smoke cleared out, the thugs were all downed, either writhing or unconscious, none were able to put up a fight.

"Uh… also, send some ambulances", Jee added to the radio.

"Wow… last night, it was that group of girls", Chit Sang said as he pulled out his handcuffs. "Tonight, it's a couple of weirdos. We're going to need more handcuffs."

Above, on the rooftop, the Blue Spirit stepped back from the edge of the building, satisfied with the result as the two cops apprehended the thugs.

"So", the hooded figure, leaning on a wall, arms crossed, smirked. "My men and I will move in within two days and get ourselves set up by the end of next week."

The Blue Spirit tilted his head to his direction ever so slightly. On the ground level, Chit Sang noticed something on the floor and bent down to reach for it; it was a purple nightshade flower.

"Don't look at me like that", the hooded figure sighed. "The order is clear: I am to set—", the Blue Spirit was more interested on the incoming small missile and the fact that it was aiming for them. The masked vigilante dashed forward and dragged the hooded one down with him as the missile hit the rooftop.

"Ok, what was that?" the hooded man grimaced, looking around; the Blue Spirit dashed and made a run for it. "Oh, okay… run before the police found us. Good idea", the hooded one shouted. "Well, talk to you later!"

"There's someone on the roof!" Jee shouted.

"Oy… me and my big mouth", the hooded figure lamented as he got up and disappeared into the night.

A distance away, a large bald man with well-trimmed beard and a tattoo of the Third Eye on his forehead lowered his robotic arm and stashed away the built-in rocket launcher. He tapped the forearm of the prosthetic and a holographic display came up, displaying a silhouette of a man in the comlink.

"_That should be enough"_, the chilly voice said._ "Retreat until further order."_

The bald cyborg switched the device off and stared at the two policemen who were suddenly alerted by the explosion. His face was impassive and uncaring.

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – United Nations Academy; Wednesday, 24 July 2013, 11:46 AM)_

Katara walked to her locker with books in her arms, so not looking forward for the summer vacation homework. She dumped her load in her locker haphazardly and closed the door to find a grinning face of her cousin.

"Korra!" she exclaimed, leaping into the taller girl's arms.

"Been awhile, shorty", Korra grinned, ruffling Katara's hair much to the latter's dismay. "Do you see Bolin anywhere? We're supposed to meet up with Mako today."

Katara's face fell; while she liked her cousin well enough, despite Korra's uncanny resemblance to Sokka, she was largely indifferent to Mako and Bolin, Katara disliked the idea of Korra being involved with the two in an underground fighting tournament.

"I don't know where he is", Katara said dryly, walking away towards the entrance. "But, it's about time for Mako's shift. Why don't you wait at the Jasmine Dragon?"

"Good idea", Korra smiled. "Have you had your lunch yet? Come on, let's have lunch there. We can catch up."

"Yeah, su— whoa!" Katara halted as Aang and Toph appeared from the classroom they were passing through and her blue eyes registered Toph as the 'cute girl with pigtails from yesterday'. "N-nice hair", she blurted out, grinning awkwardly at Toph's new spunky hairdo.

"Nice save", Toph narrowed her eyes a little at Katara's general direction before walking away with Aang, who flashed an apologetic smile, on tow.

"Hmm…" Korra smirked while Katara raked her brain and wondered if Toph really did have a _cane_ with her since Katara was sure that she _did_. "I like her", Korra decided.

Toph walked without a care in the world; her classes were not as bothersome as she thought it would be. The teachers were all sweet and sickeningly so at first until she snapped her cane in two and proclaimed that she was a metahuman who could navigate without help and could go to the bathroom without a classmate escorting her.

It was good, Toph had to admit. If only she were in her own clothes, instead of the oversized shirt and sweatpants she had borrowed from Aang, she would be super; Toph hated clothes that did not fit. Gyatso had been surprisingly understanding and accepting when Aang brought her to his place and explained everything that had happened. Toph had the impression that the old man was simply glad that Aang had a friend at all. Then again, from Aang's stories, he had spent a portion of his childhood in places where metahumans were not as accepted.

Still, Toph was not looking forward to see her guardian again; and if the distinctive footsteps and the sudden silence and low whisper that were spreading from one point from the direction of the entrance towards her were any indication, her aunt was coming her way.

"Toph", Lin Beifong called icily. "Where have you been? And what monstrosity had you let happen to your hair?!"

"Nowhere, nothing", Toph replied impudently.

Aang just had to step in. "Hi, Mrs. Beifong…" Toph snorted at the honorific and Lin Beifong's lips tightened at the 'Mrs.' part. "Um, I'm Aang. It's… uh, it's my fault. We were—"

"Stuff it, Twinkle Toes!" Toph interrupted; turning to Lin, she looked furious. "Look, I can take care of myself. You just tell my mom and dad that—"

"They're coming", Lin cut in.

Toph clenched her fists. "What?"

"You went missing for the entire day", Lin replied gruffly. "I called your phone but you wouldn't pick up. What was I supposed to do? I thought you were kidnapped!"

"You're the Chief of Police", Toph screamed back. "And you think my parents can do better than your goons!"

"I will not suffer this impudence, young lady!" Lin yanked the girl by the arm. "You are coming home with me!"

"W-wait—", Aang tried but Toph stopped him

"I'll see you later, Aang", Toph said, evading the gray eyes of the boy, and Aang noticed a small waver in her voice.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Wednesday, 24 July 2013, 12:02 PM)_

Iroh brought a box filled with party supplies into the teashop where Mako was taking care of some receipts and Zuko was having a sandwich with Lu Ten sipping tea at his table. Lu Ten gulped down his tea and rose to meet his father and the box. Together, the two unloaded the content onto an empty table. Around that time, Katara entered with Korra and Ty Lee.

Korra greeted Mako quite loudly while Katara openly glared at the boy.

When Mako arrived at their table with the menu, Katara wasted no time to scold him. "Must you involve my cousin in that brutish underground fight?"

Mako quickly shushed the girl, casting a wary glance at Iroh. "What? We need a replacement for Hashook. Besides, we won't have to fight for awhile after last night's win", Mako took a wad of yuan from his pocket and threw it to Korra.

"Thank you, kindly", Korra grinned, placing her money into her jacket pocket, ignoring Katara's intense glare.

"I don't like you risking your life for this kind of thing!" Katara snapped; Mako wisely crept away.

"Well, _mom_…" Korra leaned back nonchalantly. "I know what I'm doing and it's completely safe."

Not far, Iroh and Lu Ten were in a little argument of their own.

"I'm telling you, Dad, Azula prefers red", Lu Ten said, grabbing a bunch of red decoration.

"And I'm telling you, gold and pink are better", Iroh argued. "Besides, these colors don't clash with my décor."

Two Fire Nation boys eyed those two with a distant smile; Zuko sighed and ate the rest of his sandwich while Mako busied himself with cutting more lettuce for the salad bar.

Azula dragged her feet to the teashop but Lu Ten saw her and ran to intercept the girl, barring her entrance. "Hi, baby cousin", Lu Ten grinned widely, slipping out through the entrance. "Uh… you can't enter yet."

"But, I'm hungry", Azula whined.

"I'll buy you lunch somewhere else", Lu Ten dragged her by the wrist to the parking lot for his bike.

"I hate riding on that thing", Azula scowled at the bike.

"Alright, then", Lu Ten laughed, letting his baby cousin grab the bend of his arm as they made their way to the sidewalk. "I know a place nearby where I usually get my burritos."

Azula simply shrugged as they walked down the side of the road.

"So", Lu Ten said quaintly. "How are you doing lately?"

"The usual", Azula muttered, feeling heavy on the eyelids. "Do they have coffee?"

"Aren't you too young to drink coffee?" Lu Ten joked.

"I will hit you", Azula huffed.

They walked several blocks and found a small diner lodged between a bookshop and a small convenient store; brick building painted bright green, with a traditional style sign board with bamboo frame and dark green writing of 'Shinrin Diner'.

"You never took me here", Azula said as Lu Ten led her into the comfy looking diner with green walls and bamboo furniture, lots of indoor plants, and a row of booths at the window seats.

"I have, once", Lu Ten smirked as they sat in their booth. "You just got here for a few days. You were still a kid then."

"Really?" Azula looked around, scanning the room and its patron, the common folks of Republic City. One table on the other side of the room caught her eyes; the one occupied by a boy around Zuko's age, whose jet black hair was tied into a simple ponytail, whose body was lean and muscular, much like Zuko, but he sat with three other people who were all clearly in their twenties.

The boy was smirking at what the only female in the table was saying, an attractive but tough looking woman in black leather jacket and baggy cargo trousers of dark, and a pair of low heeled boots. Her eyes were amber like the boy's, but of darker color, and she wore no makeup and her dark wavy hair was up in a practical ponytail. The man sitting next to her was muscular but rather thin, tall and had his ponytailed hair and eyes, and general face contour, similar to the woman enough to be her brother. Like the other man who was sitting on the outside of the booth, the big muscular one with short military haircut, bearded face, and a pair of emerald green eyes, the thin amber-eyed man was wearing nondescript outfit of thin jacket and trousers, all colored dark.

The boy however, wore something more casual; long-sleeved t-shirt of dark brown with the sleeves rolled up, cargo pants of light khaki, black sneakers, and, Azula noticed around his left wrist, a bracelet of white beads and black beads. The boy's skin was pale and, along with his bright amber eyes, it convinced Azula that he was Fire Nation. Also, unlike the other three, the boy did not give off the feel that he was a trained fighter; the other three looked like they could take on even Phoenix.

"If I were here a long time ago, what did I have here?" Azula asked Lu Ten, deciding to ignore the boy and his companions despite a little tug she felt in her chest; she felt like she knew that boy somehow.

"I can't really remember", Lu Ten frowned as he flipped open the menu. "Cherry pie, I think. I remember wiping your mouth and there was something red sticking on your face."

Azula smirked. "I'll have that."

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Location Unknown; 24 July 2013, 12:45 PM)_

In the dark room, five large floating screens blinked to life, showing five dark silhouettes: one was obviously a female with a hair bun, one man in a hood, two men with round shape head, and a man with combed hair. The cyborg with third eye tattoo on his forehead was in audience with them.

"_This does not bode well",_ one of the men with round shape head, the one directly on the middle screen, said with automated voice. _"These new players will prove to be disadvantageous."_

"_We have enough problems with those girls and the Blue Spirit"_, the female spoke. _"But, at least, they are easy to contain. We have also taken steps to neutralize the Blue Spirit."_

"_True"_, the man with a neatly combed hair added. _"But, he seems to have allied himself with this newcomer"_, another screen blinked to life and it showed a surveillance photograph of the Blue Spirit and the hooded man from last night's event. _"We still don't know what this man is capable of."_

"_He is undoubtedly an expert hand-to-hand combatant",_ the hooded silhouette assessed. _"And he employs guns. Plasma gun, a high-tech weapon. We have to assume that he is well-funded."_

The man in the middle screen made a sound that sounded like a thoughtful hum. _"There's one Deep Forest Industry based in the Fire Nation. They are developing plasma weapons."_

"_His fighting style also looks like of Fire Nation origin. Definitely not Republic City; it's traditional and rather orthodox",_ the other man with round head silhouette finally spoke. "_It almost looks like a combination of Wing Chun and Chang Quan; old styles."_

"_But, he doesn't fight like a traditionalist",_ the hooded silhouette said as the extra screen showed the video recording from last night's fight. _"I also see traces of Eagle Claw, Eight Direction Fist, Tiger Claw, Xing Yi… and even the rare Diao Ling form."_

"All ancient military styles", a figure emerged from the shadow of the room, a female figure of slender built in dark hood, black metal armor with breastplate and shoulder plates, engraved with the pattern of silver cloudy flame around the edges, and a mask with curved cloudy flames on the surface, forming the artistic face of a lynx. "He's not a traditionalist", the female assessed, her voice lilting like a temptress' as she watched the recording of the hooded man fighting the thugs alongside the Blue Spirit.

"_Traditionalists don't mix styles",_ the hooded silhouette concurred. _"Out of principles, especially one of Fire Nation blood."_

"But, he's not a contemporary mixed stylist, either", the masked female added, fingerless-gloved hand touched her chin as she pondered. "He's using one of the old forms of mixed martial art, the first ever mixed martial art style in history. It's Shi Shen Mo."

The female was expected some sort of a reaction but the silhouettes remained calm.

The hooded silhouette whispered_. "Death's Touch."_

"_So, the Fire Nation has made their move",_ the man in the middle screen spoke with a well-masked contempt. _"Strange, considering that we have not heard anything from our contacts in the Nation. And now, we have a practitioner of the Fire Nation Royal Assassins martial art style aiding our opponents."_

"He's not a Royal Assassin", the masked female's voice went icy. "His skills are impressive", she said fairly, watching the hooded figure on the screen sweeping down a thug with a spin kick and locked the thug's head with his leg as he crouched, drawing his gun and fire at two incoming thugs in less than two seconds. "But, he is far from the level of mastery. And I see traces of improvisation."

"_Do you know who he is?"_ the female silhouette asked sharply.

"Well, I have a hunch", the masked female smirked under her mask.

"_Lynx",_ the man in the middle screen said firmly. _"If we find that you are withholding any information—"_

Lynx raised a hand and interrupted. "I simply need time to verify my hunches", she said.

"_Fair enough",_ the man said. _"I expect you to report your result."_

"Will do", Lynx hummed airily. "But, what about the girls and the Blue Spirit?"

"_They are inconsequential for now",_ the man in the middle said; four more screens blinked to life, showing Phoenix, Acro, Stealth, and the Blue Spirit in battles. "_We have studied their abilities and are almost ready with the countermeasures."_

"Cool", Lynx sounded nonchalant but the cyborg, who had remained silent so far, leered at her, noticing the blue eyes behind the mask fixing themselves on Stealth. "Well, if there isn't anything else, I think I'll go back to my work now."

"_Of course",_ the man in the middle screen said. _"Soon, the Shadow Society will emerge and the Republic City will be ours."_

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden – Shinrin Diner; Wednesday, 24 July 2013, 12:54 PM)_

"Are you excited about your birthday party?" Lu Ten asked, sipping his hot tea.

Azula shrugged, playing with the foam on the surface of her latte. "What are you giving me this year?" she asked, glancing from the corner of her eyes at the table that the boy now occupied alone, where he appeared to be sketching something on a notepad.

"You'll see", Lu Ten grinned.

"Shall we go?" Azula asked, checking her phone. "It's almost one."

"Why don't you wear that wristwatch I gave you for Christmas?" Lu Ten frowned, calling for the check.

"I don't like wearing accessories. I have my phone for the purpose of telling me the time", Azula said flatly, sipping her coffee.

A plump and short middle-aged woman arrived with the check on a small bamboo tray. She was clad in a peculiar gypsy-ish loose outfit and a bandana that was adorned with small colorful beads, a soft looking scarf that made Azula think of flowing water, all colored sandy brown, and an awkward but friendly smile on her face. She spoke to Lu Ten in a language that Azula did not recognize and Lu Ten replied in the same tongue; from the way their eyes darted to her direction every now and then, and Lu Ten openly pointing at her, Azula guessed they were talking about her.

"Azula?" the woman looked surprise as she gave the girl a scrutinizing look. "Azula, Lu Ten? Your little cousin from years ago? The cute little girl who ate a whole cherry pie all by herself?"

"That's the one, Baba", Lu Ten laughed.

"Oh, my…" Baba smiled wider, letting it reached her grass green eyes. "Look at you now, Azula", she reached out and invaded Azula's space; the girl tensed up as the woman stroked her hair and cheek like a mother would her child. "You are so big now", Baba leaned a little to get a closer look at the slightly bewildered girl. "So beautiful now…"

"Yeah, you were hideous then", Lu Ten smirked at Azula, earning himself a kick under the table. Baba chuckled and walked back to the counter with the money.

A little girl approached them as Baba left, wearing the Diner's uniform of dark green shirt with a picture bamboo trees on the left side, and holding a piece of sketch paper she gave to Azula, saying that the 'nice man' who was sitting 'over there' (the girl pointed at the table where the amber-eyed boy was sitting and it was now empty) wanted Azula to have it.

Frowning, Azula cast another quick glance at the now empty table and took a look at the paper; it was a sketch of her face from the side angle, wearing her hair in the partial ponytail she was wearing at the moment.

"Oh, he's gone?" Lu Ten whined childishly at the little girl. "I saw him when we entered but he seemed busy so I didn't want to disturb him."

"Do you know him?" Azula asked, still admiring the sketch, noticing a small drawing of a flower at the bottom and a sleek calligraphy of 林 above it.

"Uh… yeah", Lu Ten raised a brow at Azula as he paid the little girl for the information in candies. "You know him too. Remember how he used to come to our place when we were living in the Fire Nation?"

Azula took her eyes off the sketch and eyed her cousin sharply. "I don't even remember the first time we moved here", she said dryly; her tone and face grew distant and she felt a little frustrated of how little she remembered of her home country. "For all I care, I was born here."

"Well", Lu Ten tapped the girl's nose fondly. "One day, we'll go to Ember Island. We have a summer house there."

"Promise?" Azula pouted cutely.

Lu Ten laughed and got up, taking his baby cousin's hand in his arm as they walked back to school.

"Why did we move here?" Azula asked, feeling that tug again in her chest, the one she felt whenever the subject about their old life in the Fire Nation came up.

"Well, first of all, me and my dad moved here first", Lu Ten smiled. "You were two when we moved. Aunt Ursa called us after we arrived; she told us that you were crying your eyes out every day because you couldn't find us."

"That is a big fat lie", Azula grumble, feeling warm around the cheeks.

Lu Ten laughed. "Aww, look at you; you're cute when you're in denial."

Azula huffed and pinched his arm.

"My dad has always been fascinated with the Republic City", Lu Ten said, still smiling. "As for me? Well, they have better science program here than in the Fire Nation."

He glanced at his baby cousin and searched her face. "You mom and dad brought you two here about a few months after you turned four. It was winter, your first time seeing snow", he smiled fondly.

Azula bit her lip to prevent the smile from forming, unrolling the paper she held in her free hand to distract himself. "What about this guy?"

"He's pretty cool", Lu Ten snickered. "I invited him to your birthday party", Lu Ten added.

"You, Uncle…" Azula grumbled. "Why do people keep inviting strangers to my birthday party?"

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, South City – South City Animal Shelter; Wednesday, 24 July 2013, 01:00 PM)_

Zuko bandaged the front leg of the golden retriever gently and tied the knot. He finished with patting the dog's head, earning himself a lick on the face.

"Wow, that is amazing Zuko", Jin praised, standing nearby while Zuko helped the golden retriever down. "You have ways with animals. He won't stay still when I did it."

"He's just anxious", Zuko said, patting the dog on the head. "Is there anything else?"

"No", Jin smiled. "Sorry for calling you when you are at school."

"That's cool", Zuko replied. "I have no class after lunch anyway."

"Oh?" Jin's eyes sparked. "Um, would you like to go on a lunch with me? You know, as a thank you."

"No, thanks", Zuko pushed the door behind the counter open and let the golden retriever slip through it. "I have to go back to my uncle's teashop. We're decorating it for my sister's birthday party this evening."

"Oh…" Jin looked visibly sullen.

"Would you, uh, like to come?" Zuko offered as he noticed Jin's downed expression, thinking that it was his fault.

"Sure", Jin took it, beaming.

Giving away a small smile, Zuko nodded his goodbye and got out; Jin waved and smiled brightly.

Wincing at the beginning of bright summer sunlight, Zuko got in his car and drove back to Tosako. A teenager around his age, wearing a dark brown long-sleeved t-shirt and khaki cargo trousers, got up from the sidewalk bench across the street from the shelter and dumped his empty coffee cup in the nearby trash can. He put on the earbuds of his IPod and crossed the street with hands in his pocket. He walked to the front door of the shelter, watching Jin brushing a long-haired Persian cat. He halted as his hand was about to push the door and his expression went blank.

Five seconds later, he moved as abruptly as he stopped, and rounded to the narrow alleyway between the shelter and the pastry shop at its right side. His pace quickened until he reached the corner that joined the alley to another one that framed the other side of the block. He leaned on the wall, hiding himself at the corner.

Few seconds after he did, a burly man wearing dark jackets and pants, and a balaclava on top of his head, walked through the corner and was startled by the boy. Without waiting for any response or taking off his earbuds, the boy delivered a lightning fast side chop at the bigger man's throat. As the man choked, the boy kicked low at his kneecaps, eliciting a choked scream, and a downward punch at the back of the man's head as he doubled over from pain.

The man bounced his face on the ground hard and was knocked out by the blow. The boy dusted his hands and dialed his phone as he walked away.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Wednesday, 24 July 2013, 05:43 PM)_

Azula slouched on her uncle's apartment above the teashop. The place was tidy and cozy, despite its size. The living room had beige walls and red rug on the floor, with a large flat screen TV on a short cabinet, framed on both sides by knee-height vase housing thin bamboos. A short-legged wide coffee table was in the middle of the room, in front of a set of long couch on which Azula was hugging her legs, pouting.

She turned to her right, to the glass panels leading to the balcony, through which the setting sun was shining. The golden of the ray mocked her. She lit a small flame on her palm and was tempted to throw it to one of the many bonsai pots aligned on the long table at the balcony.

The front door clicked and Iroh walked in. He frowned at Azula's small blue flame but resumed his walk to the couch.

"You're missing your party", Iroh said nonchalantly, turning on the TV with the remote he found on the table.

"Is Dad here yet?" Azula grumbled, watching Iroh flicking channels.

"No", Iroh said.

"Is Zuko here yet?"

"I'm sorry, no."

They stayed in silence for the next few minutes while watching the news. A live report on a local carnival met an unexpected attack by a gang of robbers and the Blue Spirit appeared to stop them; the camera got the whole thing but Azula did not care. Iroh said nothing.

Finally, as the commercials came, Iroh turned off the TV. "Come, Princess", he said kindly, putting his hands gently on the girl's shoulders. "Let's go to your party."

"I don't want to", Azula sulked. "My dad's not here yet."

"We can start without him. We'll save a slice of cake for him", Iroh smiled. "Come", he got up, pulling the girl up gently with him.

Downstairs, Ty Lee, Suki, and Katara were holding the line, trying to keep the guests entertained; not that many turned up. Only half of the new students Iroh invited came. Jin looked awkward as she sat alone with her drink, not knowing anyone there; Aang had given up looking for Toph; Mako sat with Korra and Bolin; Mai was sloshing her half empty glass of lemonade at the table next to them; and, strangely, there were three old men sitting at a table with four cups of tea.

The room had been decorated with golden ribbons and colorful balloons, with a large Happy Birthday on the wall behind the counter. A large square cake with white vanilla frosting, pink flowers around the corner, and bright red writing of _'Happy 14__th__ Birthday Azula'_ was put on a trolley behind the counter.

"I'm hungry", one of the students said.

"I know, we all are", Katara sighed. "But, just be patient, okay. Azula will be here soon."

The bell above the front door rang and everyone turned to it hopefully; they actually grunted as Lu Ten, Sokka, and a boy with amber eyes walked in.

"Ouch", Lu Ten said to the whole room as he led his friends in and settled at a table.

Aang, who was hoping it was Toph, sighed and turned back to his drink. A girl, one of the new students, sat on the seat in front of him; her skin was pale and her eyes as brown as her hair, her hair that was tied into a ponytail, with a fringe above her eyes.

"Hi", she greeted. "I'm On Ji."

"Hi", Aang smiled back, happy for the distraction from Toph's absence and his gift that had been drawing her to Katara. "I'm Aang", he said with a smile, casting a quick glance at Katara, trying to calm his mind.

"Nice to meet you", she smiled sweetly. "Hey, Haru, come meet Aang", she called a boy from the group that was with Katara and the girls over. The longhaired green-eyed tanned-skinned boy who was wearing a green bandana and baggy shirt and trousers grinned and walked to their table.

Outside, Ozai parked his dark sedan in the parking lot. He stepped down, resplendent in his suit, and opened the door for Ursa who was clad in a flattering but modest red dress. Taking her husband's hand offering to help her up, Ursa asked. "Did you bring Azula's present?"

"Iroh has it", Ozai simply said as they walked to the teashop.

Ursa sighed. "You asked Iroh to buy it for you, didn't you?"

"I'm busy with work", Ozai frowned. "Besides", he added, pushing the door open. "Iroh is better at this than me."

"I could have done it", Ursa hissed from the corner of her mouth as she smiled at the guests inside. "Thank you all for coming", she smiled to the room.

As if on cue, Iroh appeared from the backroom with Azula on tow; the girl's disappointed look sparked to a happier one at the sight of her parents.

Mako, now behind the counter, turned on the music and brought out the cake. Azula, hugging her father, smiled at the cake and her eyes fell on the boy that she had seen at the diner with Lu Ten. He was talking on the phone and said something to Sokka and Lu Ten, fist-bumped Lu Ten before he got up.

It was not like her, she did not like strangers, but she felt like she wanted to go to him and talk; luckily, Katara and Suki hugged her and congratulated her, stopping her from doing that. Ty Lee came next, bringing the other girls with her, and by the time they were done with the hugging, Azula had to blow the candles, and by the time she was done, Azula looked around the room subtly while cutting the cake, and found that the boy was gone.

She presented the first slice to her dad, earning a kiss on the forehead, and let Katara did the rest of the cutting as she weaved through the crowd to check again, only to run into Lu Ten's crushing hug.

Grinning, Lu Ten let go and took something from the nearest table. "I am _not_ wearing that", Azula narrowed her eyes at the paper crown. "And if you hug me, I'll stab you in the eye", she warned Sokka who approached with his arms wide open. "Where did your friend go?" she asked Lu Ten.

"Something came up", Lu Ten smiled apologetically, pulling a small box wrapped in light purple glossy paper. "His present for you."

Azula took it and the rest of the party went on boringly to her; everybody else seemed to be having a good time though, especially after Uncle Iroh set up the karaoke machine. Then, it turned slightly horrible when Katara and Ty Lee dragged Azula to the center and made her sing.

Iroh grinned as Azula finished with her song and the sulky girl dragged her feet to the old people table, occupying Iroh's seat as the old man moved to the microphone next. Piandao smirked as Azula folded her arms on the table and bury her face on it. "That wasn't so bad", he tried, grinning.

"I hate singing", Azula grumbled, resting her chin on her arms and moving Iroh's Pai Sho tile.

Jeong Jeong, Iroh's opponent, was quite impressed by how quickly Azula grasped the complexity of Iroh's four-point gambits in just a glance, and how expertly the girl resumed her uncle's gambit.

Pakku, sitting beside the girl in the booth, snickered loudly at Jeong Jeong's look of incredulity.

Azula turned to her and narrowed her eyes. "What are you giving me for my birthday?"

"Priceless wisdom", Pakku countered slyly. "Look right and left before you cross a road."

Azula blew a tiny raspberry.

"I bought you a nice book", Piandao said kindly; he had always been fond of the girl, one of his best students.

"Why do you sit here with us, instead of with your friends?" Pakku frowned.

"What friends?" Azula asked back dryly. "How many people here who are not my family?"

"Twenty… thirty…" Jeong Jeong guessed, placing a tile to counter his opponent's gambit.

"And I only know about seven of them", Azula grunted and returned her chin on her folded arms, looking bored as she placed a rose tile to patch up her gambit, completing her unbreakable Sixth Mountain Gambit. And it was boring, up to the time it was over and she and Lu Ten hitched a ride home with Zuko.

By the time they arrived at her house, Azula was dead tired. She collapsed face first on her bed and felt comfortable for what seemed like a long time. Zuko and Lu Ten came in after her, carrying her boxes of presents for her.

While Zuko begrudgingly put his load on the floor at the side of the bed and got out, Lu Ten hung around and scanned the red painted room. There were two bookcases standing side by side, filled with various types of books, from comic books to college level science textbooks. The queen-sized bed was littered by fluffy pillows and some stuffed animals; Lu Ten felt a little pride as he recognized some of them as the ones that he had gifted his baby cousin. A vanity table was at the wall next to the door, and at the end table at the foot of the bed, stood a two-tier sword stand housing a blue long jian and a red short sword. At the window, stood Azula's study desk that housed three computer screens and one keyboard, and around the room, numerous stuffed animals littered around. At the side of the vanity mirror, there was console with a flat screen TV on it.

Azula felt Lu Ten plopping down on her bed and turned to him. Lu Ten lay down on his back and netted his fingers under his head, smiling at the several small toy planes that Azula got from the cereal box and hung on the ceiling. "So, I like the cake", Lu Ten said, rubbing his belly.

Azula snorted and snuggled into his arms. Lu Ten squeezed her once and kissed the top of her head. "Wanna open your gifts?"

Azula let out a noncommittal grunt. Lu Ten disentangled himself and sat up, grinning. He took out the biggest one from the bunch. "This one from your mom and dad", he declared.

"It's from Uncle", Azula said dryly, sitting up.

"It's from your mom and dad", Lu Ten said again cheerfully, with a winning smile.

"Uncle's the one who got it."

"Yes, he did. But, it's from your mom and dad", Lu Ten's grin did not falter as he unwrapped the box and pulled out a big brown stuffed bear.

Azula took it and threw it over her shoulder.

"Ouch", Lu Ten pouted. "I picked that one."

Azula picked out a tiny box and opened it; a small porcelain figurine of a rabbit from Zuko. Azula crawled to the foot of her bed and placed it at the end table near her sword with the others, completing her collection of the twelve zodiac animals.

"Here's one from me", Lu Ten said, handing the girl his gift. Azula unwrapped the small box and found a thin golden chain bracelet with a small metal 'A' dangling on it.

"And this is from Ty Lee", he picked up a pink box that had yet another stuffed animal in it.

"Why do people insist on giving me girl toys?" Azula griped. "Have I not given them enough reasons to give up?"

"People can be thick sometimes", Lu Ten said, unwrapping a handmade woolen scarf from Katara and Sokka.

"I wanna sleep", Azula said, plopping back down onto the bed.

"It's still early", Lu Ten lay back down and let the girl snuggled into his arms. "Let's talk."

"No", Azula grunted and nuzzled into Lu Ten's arms.

"Night", Lu Ten smiled, pecking the top of girl's head.

It took less than five minutes for the girl to sleep and let out a soft purr. Lu Ten smiled as he disentangled himself gently and picked the girl up slowly to set her straight on the bed. In so many ways, Azula was still that little girl who liked to be carried around. He tucked his baby cousin in the cover and felt a certain kind of sadness as he tucked her hair behind her ear. How he loved his baby cousin, like a sister he had never had. Gently, he leaned down and kissed the girl on the forehead before he got out of the room.

Closing the door behind him softly, he made a detour to Zuko's room. Avi woke up and raised its head as Lu Ten opened the door. He put his finger on his lips at the dog and tiptoed in; a bit hard to do considering the numbers of items littering the floor. Zuko was lying sprawled like some bad graffiti on the bed. The boy had always been a restless sleeper.

Gently, Lu Ten picked up the discarded blanket on the floor –he had to wrestle it from Avi who had decided to make it its bed-, put his little cousin's limbs to a more respectable position, and put the blanket over the boy.

Sighing, Lu Ten cast a long look at his cousin's face. Zuko, he knew, like Azula, barely remembered their lives in the Fire Nation. It was for the best, Lu Ten convinced himself as he found himself at the guest room, lying on the bed, looking out the window at the moon.

The Republic City had its own… _charm_. Zuko was talented despite the lack of encouragement and appreciation he received (well, from the people who mattered to the boy) and Lu Ten had made plans to take him under his wings; like he had, with greater success, with Azula. Azula had great beauty and wonderful mind, qualities that the City was so ready to suck dry, and Lu Ten felt compelled to protect her the best he could.

Azula had shown quite an aptitude in computer science and she got along with Sokka; Sokka often said that Azula was a more fun sister than Katara. Lu Ten was sure he could convince Azula to resume her education to the United Nations University where he and Sokka could keep a watchful eye on her. Zuko had quite an excellent achievement in his academics although he was not outstanding like his sister; Lu Ten was sure that Zuko could still fit in.

Sighing, Lu Ten turned away from the moon outside the window and closed his eyes.

"_Trouble for another day"_, he muttered to himself.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Dragon Flats Borough; Wednesday, 24 July 2013, 10:23 PM)_

Chit Sang led Jee down the dark alley, walking with confidence despite Jee's visible wariness. Alleyway in the dark at the Borough; they were asking to get mugged.

"Listen, Chit Sang", Jee growled. "I change my mind", he stopped and Chit Sang turned to him, just in time to see the dark shadow jumped down from nowhere with a flair of his cloak. "I don't think I want to meet this contact of yours anymore."

"Too late", Chit Sang grinned, taking out a cigarette from the pack in his pocket and lighting it. "He's here", he nudged his chin at the figure behind Jee, blowing a puff.

Jee turned around and startled. "Whoa!" he exclaimed, pulling out his handgun quickly.

An arrow flew from nowhere and knocked his gun off his hand.

"Hey, hey!" Chit Sang quickly stepped in between them, raising his hands in a peaceful manner. "We're friendly here!"

"Good evening", the hooded figure smirked, his voice masked by an electronic device, making it rough and angry. "Detectives Jee and Chit Sang."

"Who are you?" Jee demanded, eyes darting between him and Chit Sang. "You know this creep?!" he accused Chit Sang.

"Sort of", Chit Sang shrugged. "He's here to help."

"He's a vigilante!" Jee spat.

"Who took down a group of armed gangsters", Chit Sang explained calmly. "Like it or not, Jee, two of them took care of a trouble two of us could not; heck, two of them took care of a trouble _ten_ of us could not!"

"But, this… _this_ is wrong!" Jee shouted, pointing his finger sharply at the figure.

"You think I don't know that", Chit Sang snarled. "But, guess what: I don't care!" he pulled out a folder from his coat and shoved it to Jee's chest. "These people don't fight fair", Chit Sang's jaw hardened as Jee gaped a little at the content of the folder. "I don't see why we should fight fair."

Jee inhaled deeply. "Alright", he said with great effort, turning to the hooded figure. "What's your plan?"

"I have a proposal", the hooded figure raised his hand and made several hand signs; Jee, a former Navy Lieutenant, recognized the dexterity and traces of military hand sign though the signs were none he recognized.

"What proposal?" Jee asked warily, noticing from the corner of his eyes another hooded figure, one that was not wearing a robe and wearing a mask that covered his lower face like a ninja, dropped behind the first hooded figure, wearing bow and arrows on his back.

"One that benefits us all", the hooded figure nodded humbly; a hooded woman appeared at his side, offering his gun back, and another hooded figure, a tall, large, muscular man stood straight, crossing his arms on his chest like a sentinel, framing them from three sides with the robed man.

"And one that benefits the people of the Republic City", Chit Sang added.

The Blue Spirit, not joining the meeting, stalked from the dark shadow on the roof above.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden – Lin Beifong's Apartment; Wednesday, 24 July 2013, 11:00 PM)_

Toph genuinely despised the heavily padded and carpeted room of hers; thick rug covering the walls, carpet on every inch of the floor, paddings on every furniture. She knew that, despite her aunt's protest, her parents had the whole room and a part of the house refurbished, adding carpets and child-proofing the apartment.

Lin Beifong had been rather unhappy, she herself knew of Toph's meta-ability and that Toph could function like a sighted person, but Lao Beifong was incorrigible in his ways. Lin had never told her brother of his daughter's gift, believing that Toph had the sole privilege of that, but she had never spoilt or given the girl any special treatment either.

Against her brother's instruction and her own better judgment, Lin had let Toph go to school on her own, since the place was only a few blocks away, but Toph had failed to return that day, return any of her call, and Lin found her at her school with her hair in that weird young people style. Lin honestly did not care if Toph lived her life normally, like the way girls her age should be; Lin, however, took issue if Toph's action left visible marks on her. Lin could not even begin how she would explain Toph's hair to Lao.

Toph did not care, of course, sitting on her bed, grasping her feet on the bed. She could feel the vibration from living room where her aunt was pacing the room, speaking in hushed voice on the phone. She heard the muffled voice of her father, saying that their flight had been cancelled.

A little respite before she had to be shipped out back to Gaoling, back to her cage, to private tutors and home school. Back to being a helpless little girl. She closed her eyes and plopped down sideways, drifting off to sleep. Trouble for another day, she convinced herself.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Goldenbell – the Kais' Residence; Wednesday, 24 July 2013, 11:43 PM)_

Ozai, genius inventor and the CEO of Phoenix King Tech, was proud of his achievement. He was particularly proud of his basement, located under his… basement; he had two basements, one was a regular basement where they stored barrels of wine and preserved food for emergency, and some old furniture, and the second one, accessible through an elevator disguised inside one of those giant barrels with the diameter of two meters, was his crown jewel.

The basement was geared with the latest of technologies, computers, and gadgets, and where he worked on the gears and equipment used by Phoenix, Acro, and Stealth. He kept the existence of the place close to his chest; even Ursa and Zuko, who knew about the basement but not the superheroes he had under his command, were not allowed in the basement.

Azula was nonchalant in her special privilege of entering the basement anytime she wanted. Ozai, when he built the place, had told his family that he would be training Azula to control her power in the basement ("It's safer that way", Ozai had reasoned) and part of the high-tech basement was dedicated into a well-equipped gym, with a partition of bulletproof glass panels between the two halves of the vast room that, in total, was as big as a basketball court.

The lab in the basement was fitted by a large tabletop computer in the middle, surrounded by panels of screen fitted on the surrounding walls, and metal tables that housed numerous scientific equipment. The tabletop computer was capable of holographic projection and, when Ozai entered the room, wearing his reading glasses and reading from his tablet, he found his little girl, still in her day clothes that she was wearing in her birthday party, sleeping on top of it.

Sighing, Ozai took off his glasses and put them away with his tablet on the nearest table. Gently, he carried his daughter up like she was a little girl once more, and moved her to the couch. Halfway there, in a rare wave of sentimentality, he decided to sit down on the couch with his little girl latching onto him, sleeping in his arms.

"I'm tired", Azula muttered, not opening her eyes.

"I know", Ozai held her tighter. "I've called Acro and Stealth. You can take a break tonight."

Azula simply grunted and nuzzled deeper onto her father's chest, gripping the front of his shirt with her small hand; her other hand was holding something in it. Opening her eyes slowly, Azula cast a tired look at it; a small pecan pie made of marble, the birthday present from that boy who, according to Lu Ten, she knew from Fire Nation, from another life.

"Daddy?" she called with a small voice that, much to Ozai's secret pride, she never let out on anyone but him.

"Yes?" Ozai slouched for a more comfortable position, holding his little girl carefully so she would not fall.

"Why did we leave Fire Nation?" Azula asked quietly.

Ozai's jaw hardened but he did not say anything. Quietly, he buried his mouth onto the top of the girl's head and he kissed her there. "Sleep", he said. "And happy birthday", he added, pulling a long wrapped box from the table near him and slipped it onto the girl's lap.

Safe and warm, Azula smiled a little and drifted off to sleep, accompanied by the flood of colors of bright red and sunny gold, and flaring fire that burn them all.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Fire Nation, Capital City – Fire Nation Royal Palace; Wednesday, 24 July 2013, 11:53 PM)_

The old man was wearing the traditional robe of royalty and his snow white hair was long and tied into a topknot as per the ancient tradition of Fire Nation, and, sitting in a padded chair at the side of a small round table, he eyed the small cube he held in his hand with contempt; his old but sharp aquiline eyes glared at the symbol of a phoenix wearing a flame as a crown on the cube icily.

"Phoenix King", he snarled. "And he has begun to deliberately distribute his products into my nation. That brat has finally grown a spine."

"Oh, hush now", the old lady in an equally elaborate robe of red and gold, sitting at the other side of the table, huffed. "He got it from you. You can't complain."

Still looking upset, the old man threw the cube on the table. A group of servant appeared and entered the room; one was in the middle while two walked a few steps behind him at his right and left, carrying a tray bearing a teapot and empty glasses respectively. They bowed and the one in the middle began preparing the cup, putting three upturned cups on the table and filled the fourth one for the old man.

Done with their work, they bowed once more and began walking backward, still bowing in reverence. The old man though stopped them with one single word. "Wait", he said icily. "Why have you not poured a cup for my Fire Lady?"

Gulping and sweating nervously, the servant in the middle glanced around at his companions. Bowing deeper, he led the two forward and filled a second cup for the Fire Lady. They bowed again and, got out as fast as permitted.

"Insolent peasants", Fire Lord Azulon cursed under his breath.

"Oh, come now", Fire Lady Illah picked up her cup and took a sip. "You know full well why this happen, why you lost your sons and your grandchildren: you lack discipline."

Azulon snorted bitterly and gulped down his cup in one go. He clapped his hands and four figures in dark hooded armor and lynx masks appeared before him, kneeling. Azulon threw the cube to one of them and said. "You know what to do."

The Royal Assassins bowed once and disappeared in a puff of shadow.

Illah, sipping her tea still, jabbed. "This is not going to end well."


	4. Chapter 3 - The Man in Red Armor

**Chapter 3 – The Man in Red Armor**

Disclaimer: I own nothing

* * *

><p><em>(Republic City, Goldenbell – the Kais' Residence; Thursday, 25 July 2013, 11:21 AM)<em>

The Goldenbell was a gated community located at the hill on the northwestern point of the Republic City. It housed around thirty families of the richest and most influential, including the mayor and some powerful families like the Tys, the Kais, the Satos, and a branch of the Beifongs. The cliff it was on overlooked the ocean and the beach was quite a popular spot for the summer.

Mai, however, disliked sunlight. She was more content walking down the tunnel underneath her basement and made the short walk it took for her to reach the small automated door masquerading as brick walls that opened a path directly into the lab under Azula's house, the command center of the… well, her, Azula, and Ty Lee.

They really should repetition a team name to Ozai.

When she entered the lab, enjoying the blast of air-conditioned draft from inside the facility, she noticed Azula and Ty Lee in there, sitting in the couch, watching _Thor_ on the tabletop with a bowl of popcorn between them. It might be that they were cutting school –they had a Summer Festival at school, where students opened booths like they do in carnivals- or that they were in their tank tops and shorts since the temperature had spiked up out there, but Mai was sure Azula looked kinda… happy. It rarely happened, not like this, not without someone losing a certain amount of blood or suffering from varying degrees of burn.

"Hey, Mai", Azula grinned as Mai joined them at the couch. "Look what my dad gave me for my birthday."

Azula picked up a red tube-like object from the glass coffee table in front of them; Mai noticed the golden accent and flame around and all over it, like the color theme of Phoenix's outfit. And Mai certainly noticed the red laser blade coming out of it. "It's a lightsaber!" Azula squealed happily.

Ozai entered the room around that time and sighed loudly. "It's not a lightsaber", he said grumpily. "It's a plasma stun stick."

Azula blew a raspberry at his direction; Ozai turned and settled at a nearby working table, hiding his amused smile.

"Shouldn't you girls be at school?" Ozai asked, peering through the microscope on the table.

Azula and Ty Lee chorused. "Nope", while Mai said a flat. "Yes."

The former two shot Mai a look.

"There's no class today", Azula slouched back on the couch, grabbing a handful of popcorn. "Even Zuko's skipping school and went to the shelter."

Ozai made a grumbling sound at the mention of Zuko and his part-time job at the animal shelter. "Then, why don't you girls go out and enjoy the sunlight?"

"Because Mai's a vampire", Azula jabbed.

"Out", Ozai said commandingly. "I need peace and quiet today."

Grumbling, Azula led the girls in vacating their movie watching back up to the living room upstairs where the air conditioner was fighting a losing battle against the early but intense summer heat.

In the middle of watching, Azula's cellphone buzzed; a text from her father simply said '_turn on the news_'. Azula grabbed the remote and switched it to the news channel. It showed a battle downtown where the Blue Spirit and four hooded figures fought a gang of armed robbers.

"Oh… well, that's unexpected", Azula shrugged; at his right and left, Mai and Ty Lee grunted in agreement. "I thought the Blue Spirit only showed up at night", Azula added, nonchalantly popping a popcorn into her mouth; Mai and Ty Lee turned to her and cast her a look.

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

**Heroes of Republic City**

**-W-A-T-E-R**-

_(Republic City, Tosako – United Nations Academy; Thursday, 25 July 2013, 10:12 AM)_

Sometimes Katara never knew why she bothered with Azula; the latter had just texted her, saying that she was going to miss the school event and she even ended the text with a ':p'. Shaking her head exasperatingly at their undermanned cupcake stand, she sighed at the crowd that had started to enter the school. At least, she still had Suki with her… up until Sokka showed up and distracted the girl, and not to mention ate like ten cupcakes.

"Sokka, that's enough frosting!" Katara snapped, snatching the now-half-filled pastry bag.

"What? It says '_Pick Your Own Topping_'", Sokka protested, pointing at the sign at their booth.

Katara simply glared at him.

"Oh, come on, Katara. Let the man eat", Suki grinned.

Sokka looked at her like he would an angel from Heaven above. "I love you."

"You're dorky", Suki replied sweetly.

Katara made a loud gagging sound.

"Look, we're almost out of frosting", Suki said, checking their supplies.

Katara checked her wristwatch and grunted. "And it's almost noon, too", she said. "The road's gonna be packed. Is Zuko here?"

"No", Suki smirked, uncorking a bottle of water. "Wow, you're in a crisis and the first person who comes to your mind is Zuko. Why aren't you two dating already?"

Katara narrowed her eyes sharply at the other girl. "Uh… maybe because he and Mai are."

Suki nearly spluttered the water she was drinking. "What?! Since when?"

"I don't know", Katara muttered, grabbing her bag from under the table. "Azula said since the two of them were in their cribs. I think she was kidding but… well, Ty Lee said the same thing, so…"

Getting out of their stand, she grabbed Sokka by the collar. "Now, you listen to me, mister", she threatened. "When I get back, I want the two of you _here_. You do not leave this place; you do not leave to goof off, you do not leave for any business, you do not even leave for toilet! Do I make myself clear?"

"Uh… what if I have to pee?" Sokka gulped under his sister's glare.

"It's hot today. Keep it in, stay hydrated", Katara huffed, striding away, running into a boy in green shirt and beige pants.

"Oh, hi", the green-eyed boy smiled. "Hey, you're Katara, right?"

"Yeah, you're… uh, Haru, was it?" Katara raked her brain for the name of the new student.

"Yeah", Haru smiled, walking along with the girl through the hallway. "Hey, this is a great turn out. We don't have this kind of thing where I came from."

"Oh, you're not from around here?" Katara frowned.

"Nah, I'm from the South Republic, practically Earth Kingdom", Haru laughed. "Are you going somewhere?"

"Yeah, to the store", Katara said. "I need to get something."

"Need a ride?" Haru offered. "My car's parked out front."

"_Oh_, thank you", Katara could have kissed the guy.

Riding on Haru's green coupe was definitely better than getting smudged between people rushing to lunch on the bus in this heat, even if they were joined by Aang and Toph after the latter invited themselves to join in their little excursion. As they passed the intersection of a relatively empty part of the town, Mako got out of the apartment building above a small gym where he and Bolin lived. He was just crossing the street to get to the nice Water Tribe restaurant near their place when a yellow scooter hit him.

Martial art training kicked in as his reflex saved him by… well, bracing for impact and, to her credit, the girl who rode the scooter braked and shifted the scooter in time so Mako was hit by the side of the scooter and not the front. The collision still sent him flying back and falling on his butt though. The girl quickly descended her ride and took off her helmet as she moved to help the boy up. "Oh, no. I am so sorry, I didn't see you", she exclaimed.

"How could you not see me", Mako snapped, rubbing his head. "I mean, I was ju—", the rest of his words faded as he cast a look at the angel who had just run him over with a scooter.

Long wavy black hair, pale skin, bright green eyes and red painted lips adoring her beautifully done face; her very countenance screamed high class, including her expensive looking leather jacket, jeans and boots.

"I was…I…I… wow", he cleared his throat, trying to force his voice out. "That was…" his voice failed again and he had to clear his throat again.

With the best of intention, the girl knelt down beside him, grabbing his arm as she tried to help him up. "Are you okay?" she asked apologetically. "Did I hurt you? I am such an idiot."

"Don't worry, I'm fine", Mako managed to return to his more presentable self as they got up. "My brother hits me harder than that every day in practice", he said, dusting himself. "But, then again, he has super strength."

"Wait, I recognize you", the girl leaned for a closer look. "You're Mako, right? You play for the Fire Ferrets."

"Yeah, that's me", Mako nodded.

"I am so embarrassed", the girl rubbed her forehead in both relief and slight shame. "My name's Asami", she extended her gloved hand. "Let me make this up to you somehow. Uh… how about I treat you to dinner?" Asami offered. "Tomorrow night, eight o'clock, Kwong's Cuisine."

"Uh… Kwong's?" Mako sounded unsure as Asami returned to her scooter. "I don't have any clothes nice enough for a place that classy?"

"I'll take care of that", Asami smiled as she put on her helmet. "All you need to do is show up", she put on her riding goggles. "So… it's a date?"

"Uh, yeah, I guess so", Mako said, half chuckled. "I'll see you tomorrow night."

Asami nodded and sped away, casting a smile over her shoulder as she rode, leaving Mako who felt like he was a king of the world.

On the way to the nearest supermarket, Katara simply could not hold her curiosity anymore.

Toph did not like being interrogated but she did not see a way out; Aang was not helping, being entirely silent the whole time, mainly because he himself was curious but was too polite to pry.

"She's my aunt, okay", Toph grumbled, crossing her arms. "Stop poking around."

"Oh, I'm sorry", Katara replied sourly. "I just thought that when the Chief of Police showed up and hauled a student away, something might be wrong. Sorry for worrying."

"Yeah, you should, Sugar Queen", Toph jabbed back. "I can take care of myself."

"Did you just call me—"

"Okay", Haru and Aang jumped in. "Hey, how about some music?" Haru turned on the radio. "Cool, I love this song", he exclaimed and sang along the _Breaking Benjamin_'s song with Aang. The girls frowned at them like they were crazy for the five seconds it took for the boys to quiet down. It was awkward all the way to the supermarket.

Toph dragged Aang with her as soon as they entered the establishment, leaving Katara and Haru with their chore. "Are you sure they'll be okay on their own?" Haru asked Katara, watching the two younger kids ventured deeper into the supermarket with a shopping basket.

"Well, you heard her; she can take care of herself", Katara huffed, moving to a different direction. Haru followed a second after.

Still, Katara had to take revenge by doing her shopping quickly so they could leave earlier. As they walked through the aisle, carrying a basket filled with frostings, Korra and Bolin walked into the aisle after the latter finally caved in to Bolin's incessant begging for her to bake some of her seaweed cookies.

"Yeah", Korra said to her phone. "Just tell Iroh that I need dried seaweed. He knows a guy. Sugar", he said the last part to Bolin. "What?" Korra froze. "Uh… that might be a problem", she grinned guiltily. "I've used up most of my money."

"What money?" Bolin asked, laden with packs of sugar; Korra shoved a hand on his face.

"Let's meet tomorrow and talk about this", Korra said to her phone. "Yeah. Ok. Tonight, then. See ya, Mako."

"I think we've got everything", Bolin said, checking his basket. "Uh, wait. We have to get some nuts for Pabu", as he said that, the very red-haired ferret climbed out of his shirt, peeking out from his collar.

"You bring Pabu with you?" Korra hissed gravely. "Are you insane?!"

"What? Pabu doesn't like being alone without me. I even bring him to school, you know", Bolin added with a grin as Pabu snuck back into his shirt.

"Urgh!" Korra grunted, facepalming.

A little child and her mother walked past them and said to her mother. "Mommy, that man has a tail."

Pabu quickly snuck his dangling tail back into Bolin's shirt, holding on to the boy's shirt.

At the checkout counter, Katara and Haru waited for Toph and Aang who approached with a basket full of the groceries of an uncontrollable ten years old.

"Is she giving me a look?" Toph asked Aang and Haru; Katara frowned deeper.

"Too many candies will kill you early", Katara said.

"Good", Toph smirked, putting down her load on the counter. "You're paying, right?"

"You're a Beifong", Katara narrowed her eyes. "Aren't you supposed to be rich?"

"Wow", Toph grinned. "Someone is PMS-ing bad."

"I AM NOT PMS-ING!" Katara shouted… and drew the attention of half the store.

Shrinking from embarrassment, she fumbled for her wallet. Sokka, as if to complete Katara's misery, appeared at the other end of the checkout, waving at them. "Hey, Katara", he grinned. "Can you pick up some cookies for me?"

"Why are you here?" the blue-eyed girl growled at her brother. "I thought I told you to stay with Suki!"

"I forgot my phone at home, so I can't call you", Sokka shrugged. "And before you asked, Suki forgot her phone too."

Katara nearly ripped her hair out. "You are driving me crazy!"

Sokka frowned. "Is it your time of the month?"

Toph snorted and guffawed loudly.

Before Katara could make Sokka pay for that one comment, a group of man armed with guns and knives, clad in dark jackets and ski masks, burst in and began shouting for everyone to get down on the floor; a couple of them fired their guns and the order was carried out immediately by the scarred captives. They were almost ten of them, Korra counted as she and Bolin crouched near the beverages section, next to a mother and her young child.

"Hey, little girl", Bolin smiled friendlily despite his own fear; Korra stole glances around, lamenting the fact that they were in the middle of the aisle where their field of vision was blocked and she could only see one guy aiming a handgun at their row. "It's gonna be okay."

The little girl, crying silently, looked up to him with her big amber eyes.

"Hey, look, wanna meet my friend? I think he wants to meet you", Bolin grinned. "Come out, Pabu", the front of his shirt moved and the ferret peeked out of his collar.

The girl chuckled and wiped her tears.

"You wanna touch him? It's okay. Pabu doesn't bite", Bolin inched closer carefully, taking care not to stand up or to alert the armed robber who had his back turned on them.

Korra fixed her eyes at the back of the armed robber, sizing her chances; they were conveniently at the beverage section, plenty of liquid she could control. Still, the robbers were armed and there were hostages. It would not be easy.

At the counter, Katara watched in horror as a robber dragged a random hostage, an old man, by the collar and threw him to the ground. Balling her fist, Katara tried to get up but Sokka held her down. One look of her brother's terrified eyes stilled Katara's resolve to jump into the helpless stranger's defense. She looked around at her friends, noticing Haru's guarded expression, Aang's terrified gray eyes fixed on the old man who was lying on the ground at gun's point, and Toph who looked pale.

They were helpless there, Katara knew; the robbers were too many and too spread out. She could probably take down the closest one with her ice but she would get gunned down before she could do anything more. They were really helpless.

"Empty the machines, quickly!" the robber who held the old man roared, startling the cashiers and prompting them to work more quickly. To accentuate his point, the robber cocked his shotgun and took aim at the trembling old man's head.

Katara simply did not care anymore. She escaped Sokka's clutch and stood up, charging icy mist in her hands. The lamps blinked and died off, enveloping the store in darkness, making some people scream.

As sudden as the light went off, it came back on and, in the middle of the front aisle between the checkouts and rows, stood a figure clad in dark hooded robe. The robbers sprung to life and aimed their guns at him.

The figure turned around a little, scanning his surrounding through his low hood that covered the upper halve of his face. "In a hurry?" he asked before his hands shot out from his robe to the sides; two shurikens sang through the air and embedded themselves on two different shotguns. They exploded, making the owners of the guns yelp and drop their weapons, and spewed smoke everywhere.

The other robbers started aiming their guns at the figure and prepared to fire. None of them did since the hooded figure was standing in the middle of them and they would fire at each other by mistake; and because the figure bolted like a jackrabbit forward between the rows, pouncing at the robber in front of him to the ground, punching him on the face and knocking him unconscious. The robbers swarmed up at the aisle and Katara saw the figure running deeper.

Three other figures appeared from three different points; two burst through from the right and left exits at the sides of the building, and the third one materialized in the thin air. They wore dark clothes and hooded garb, the kind like, which Katara guessed, the robed one wore underneath his robe.

The one who appeared out of nowhere like a ghost, a female, Katara noticed, leaped at the back of the robbers and knocked many down with her fists and kicks. The other two arrived and began assisting the female. A figure who appeared from the left, a tall man with a quiver of arrows on his back leaped through the counters and landed in a crouch, pulling a portable bow from behind his back and, with a sharp jerk of his arms, snapped it open, drawing and notching an arrow at the same time. He fired the arrow and Katara followed the flying projectile soaring to her right, just in time for her to see on that side where the other figure, the bigger and wider one, sent a robber twirling down with a lariat.

Three robbers swarmed the big man with knives, failing to even pierce through the man's armor; the man pounded them down with his large fists, rammed a punch on the last one's gut and lifted him over his head like a bag of flour before slamming him down to the ground.

A robber fell inches away from where Katara stood, startling her; the female figure had just thrown the robber with a head-scissors. The female stood up from her elegant crouch and her amber eyes locked onto Katara's blue. Trailing the eye contact, the female sauntered away to the rest of the battle where the two males had taken down most of it, ignoring a robber who was rushing at her with a knife raised; the robber suffered an arrow to his side before he could even get close, tasered by the arrow.

The big one joined the two of them and the last robber was thrown out of the aisle, grunting on the floor with bloody and bruised face. The first figure stepped out of the aisle calmly, smirking at the downed opponent. "Well, I do believe that our job here is done", the robed man said; only now Katara noticed that his voice was masked with some sort of electronic device and sounded rough.

"Not quite!" somebody shouted from the left entrance; a man in a dark outfit and ski mask, aiming a grenade launcher at them.

The female and the big man parted without any hesitation, allowing the archer to shoot an arrow into the barrel of the grenade launcher. Katara felt herself jump a little at the loud explosion and she now felt Sokka's hands on her shoulder as he had stood up too.

The four dark figures rushed out after the thug and ran into more armed robbers at the front who had been waiting for them with guns aimed at the four.

The Blue Spirit dropped down soundlessly behind the semicircle of armed robbers and silently drew his dual dao sabers. One double slash dropped two armed robbers and startled the rest, giving the opening the four dark hooded figures to launch their offensive. Together, the five of them made a quick work of the robbers, witnessed by various civilians and their phone cameras, and a news crew that had been dispatched there.

The robed figure ran and slid on the ground, past two robbers, throwing shuriken that struck the robbers at their backs and tasered them to unconsciousness. He leaped up and pounced at a robber who rushed at him with a machete; an arrow flew past him at where his head had been a second before he got down and knocked a robber's gun that was aimed at the female figure. The archer ducked just in time to evade a swing of a bat and reciprocated the attack with a kick with his two feet, his hand supporting his body as he did so, and send the attacker flying to the ground.

The robber fell on the ground and had another robber slammed on him by the largest hooded and masked figure. The big man grunted and crossed his arms in front of him as an armed robber emptied a magazine on him. The bullets bounced off his armor and left no scratch. The Blue Spirit swopped in and sliced his dual dao on the gunner's leg.

The gunner fell to his knees, screaming; the last to fall. The archer, with an arrow ready, held his bow low as he scanned the ground for opponents; the big man brushed off his armor and the female cracked her knuckles.

The robed figure twirled his sword expertly to his side, splattering leftover blood on the ground, leaving the blade clean. He made a movement of sheathing the sword to his side as the blade retracted back to the hilt and stored the portable sword back on the holster at his waist.

The Blue Spirit turned to the four calmly and held his stare for s few seconds at the robed figure before he sheathed his dual dao back. The crowd was silent for a few seconds before they broke into a cheer and made a move to crowd the heroes. A puff of smoke, however, erupted on the ground and engulfed the area quickly. By the time it dissipated, the heroes were no more.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Goldenbell – the Kais' Residence; Thursday, 25 July 2013, 12:55 PM)_

"_*cough* Did you get all that?!" _coughed the reporter from inside the thick chalky smoke on the TV. _"Please tell me you got all that on tape!"_

Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee were stunned by the live news. "Whoa…" the said in tandem with Ozai who, at some point, came out and was distracted by the news like they were.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Location Unknown; Thursday, 25 July 2013, 12:55 PM)_

The five silhouettes on the five screens watched as the feedback from the hidden cameras, the security cameras, and the news stilled. The one floating screen with the feed from the news channel went off while the rest stayed and showed the aftermath of the battle.

"Fascinating", the lone figure, standing in the middle of the room, spoke at last. "Truly fascinating."

"_I refuse to believe that the Blue Spirit has never worked with those four before",_ the hooded silhouette muttered; his voice echoed slightly and eerily in the empty room.

"_I second that",_ the female silhouette added. _"Also, it is unsettling how little these two showed of their abilities"_, as she spoke, the screens went on rewind and four of them were singled out. The screens widened as the rest blinked off existence. The screens showed the looped footage of each individual dark figures; the female one as she appeared out of thin air inside the store, the big one as he shielded himself from volley of bullets in the parking lot; both screens were slightly apart from the other two in the middle, showing the robed figure as he fought with the robbers in the parking lot and the archer as he made numerous impressive shot, including the one where he shot the rocket in the bazooka wielded by a robber.

"_I suppose, the archer has abilities that improve his marksmanship",_ one of the round-headed silhouettes spoke, the one with steady but low and sly-sounding voice. _"Perhaps enhancement of the eyesight"_, a new screen blinked into existence, the one showing the portrait of a young girl and her statistics, followed by several slightly smaller screens that showed the girl in what appeared to be a lab, sitting on a strange high-tech chair, with wires fixed on her head and pulse points, accompanied by a tall bespectacled man in a lab coat, a different screen with the girl and the bespectacled man, standing in a firing range, where the girl closed one eye after another, and her mouths moved as she silently spoke, and pieces of small paper with small writing on it, fixed on the targeting device, slid away one after another, and many more where the girls seemed to be in a lab, or in the field demonstrating her ocular abilities.

"Ah, yes, I remember this one", the lone figure snickered fondly, stepping out of the dark finally, closer to one of the screens. He was a five-foot something man with wide shoulder and muscular build, thick stubby fingers, hidden in a pair of dark gloves, wearing Fire Nation armor of dark red with no engraving or adornment, and skull-masked helmet of the ancient uniform of the Royal Processions, with the red helmet and golden mask. "Meng", he said with glee in his voice. "The girl used to crack me up. She was one of the catch-and-release, yes?"

"_Yes",_ the second round-headed man said impatiently as the screens blinked off. "_She has abilities to zoom in her eyesight, but her powers are too unstable. We deemed her useless to our cause and she was returned to her family", _he added coldly.

The man in red armor turned his head to the silhouette and, though no one could see, he was glaring.

"_There are many numbers of other possibilities",_ the hooded silhouette said, bring attention back to the matter at hand; several other clusters of screens came on, showing different individuals with different powers and abilities. _"We must not limit ourselves to enhanced vision. And then, there is this one",_ the earlier four screens displaying the vigilantes blinked; three disappeared and the one showing the robed figure enlarged.

"_This one seems to be the leader"_, the hooded silhouette commented.

"_I thought the big one is the leader",_ the silhouette with combed hair retorted. Five seconds of silence ensued and they decided to ignore that one comment.

"_Fireman",_ the hooded figure said firmly. _"You are to go the Republic City and be in charge of Project Valkyrie."_

Fireman clicked his tongue in distaste. "Must I? I'm not cut out for the cloak and dagger stuff. I'm more suited for battle", he protested. "Why can't I go after these heroes instead?"

"_Do not disobey",_ the hooded figure growled. _"Lynx will take care of these… children",_ he nearly sneered.

"Oh, yeah…" Fireman rubbed his helmeted head. "Where _is_ she, anyway?"

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Thursday, 25 July 2013, 05:23 PM)_

They sat there at the lounging area. On the two corner of the Teashop, on the far wall, there was a couch set each with coffee table and magazine stand; it was a very spacious establishment. After the memorable event at the store, they were taken by the cops and briefed, checked by the medics, and they went home separately. Haru drove his friends back to school, only to wander off to the Teashop instead but no one seemed to care or made a fuss about it, not even Katara, or Sokka who tagged along. Korra and Bolin went back to their apartment where Bolin called Mako at work and told him what happened; they decided to drop by the Teashop and bumped into the kids.

Mako himself was out on errand for Iroh and had not come back since and the Teashop was virtually empty aside from a patron or two waiting for their takeouts. Iroh was busy behind the counter, preparing some food and drinks, oblivious to the fact that the kids had not touched their now cold tea. Not that they had any intention to; while Iroh had cold tea and drinks for sale at the Teashop, he was a traditionalist who himself refused to drink any teas that was not brewed at least at the same quartile of day he drank it and, though not beyond giving freebies to his nephew and niece's friends from school, he refused to give anything but, in his words, 'real' tea out of principle.

The kids looked sullen and dejected, each and everyone, even the oldest among them, Korra and Bolin. The two were no stranger to a fight; they fought for a living. Well, Bolin did. Korra was in it for extra pocket money. But still, it was… _embarrassing_. Well, yeah, sure, the Pro-Meta was… well, _safe_. They wore paddings and protective gears, and no weapons allowed –the robbers had _guns_!- but still…

Korra gripped her fists tight and, despite finding herself starting to blame the circumstances (_"If only I had some water",_ she thought to herself), she could not help but feel… weak. She could not do anything.

Katara noticed the fist on her cousin's lap and said nothing. She had kept her mouth shut the entire time and felt her lips sticking on each other. She felt helpless… and angry. She remembered the time, ten years ago, when her father slammed the butt of his rifle on the frozen closet door to free her, with Bato behind him, ready with his handgun, and little Sokka clutching on to his pants, trying not to cry despite the short bursts of vapor betraying his tearless sobs. Katara remembered the silent vow she took (as she remembered the cold amber eyes, piercing through her soul, imprinting their mark in her being for all eternity), the vow to be strong and not to be helpless anymore.

And Sokka… oh, the boy sitting beside his sister were wrecked. He was a proud boy, indeed, proud of his achievement in the martial area; black belt in judo and proficient in krav maga, trained by his father, no less, a real soldier, the fact that Sokka would so proudly pointed out whenever he had the chance. And the memory of ten years ago, when he came home from the fishing trip, where he caught his first fish, oh his pride and joy, so ready to show to her mother and gloat to her sister, when their truck were stopped by the Wolf Warriors under his father commands, when Bato informed them of what had transpired and how they were engaging some intruders in their house. Sokka remembered the terror in his father's eyes as he raced to their house, barely allowing Bato to jump in the truck and had completely forgotten that he was bringing his son to danger (he was scared witless of the look of his father's face and had not been able to make a sound). And Sokka would never ever forget the bloody mass of her mother, lying face down on the floor, in the pool of her own blood, of the holes on her back, and of his little sister and the state of shock she was in when they found her in the closet… of the silent vow he took to never ever let his sister to ever come to harm for as long as she shall live.

Aang was trembling. Just a little, not so much anymore. He hated guns (_"Guns are evil"_, he screamed in his mind. _"Just like any other weapons!"_). He would never forget the glimpses he caught from behind the man behind the slightly open door, of the massacred monks, defenseless against the whistling of blades, the clinking of chain, and the loud bang of guns, the very sound that still haunted his dreams. He gripped the teacup wrapped in his hands so tight he thought he might break it.

Toph heard the tightening of Aang's muscle but said nothing. She heard the shuffling of Bolin's large feet on the floor, the deep breathing on Haru, and even the faint whistle of the kettle on the counter in which the water was starting to boil. She heard the soft mutter of Iroh's colorful vocabulary as the old man touched the hot part of the kettle accidentally and she smelt the whiff of fragrant jasmine before anybody in the table could. She hated this, she hated this feeling of… heat rising from her face (she was sure her face was red and flustered) and she was so… so… very much wanted to hit something! She hated this. She hated being the weak, the defenseless… the helpless.

Haru cleared his throat and all eyes were drawn to him. He shrank back to his seat and the others were back to their silent lamentation. Around the same time, the front door and the side door near the counter were opened; Azula, Zuko, and Lu Ten, and Mako stepped in from the front and side door respectively. Their eyes feel upon the unlikely congregation on the corner and they halted their steps.

"Did someone die?" Azula asked, ever so crassly.

Katara threw her a glare.

"What's wrong with them?" Lu Ten asked as he joined Iroh behind the counter; Azula and Zuko sat down at the counter side stools nearest to them. "They look like they've lost a puppy."

"Haven't you heard the news?" Iroh said as he fixed a pot of tea. "About the robbery? They were caught in it."

"I watched the news on TV at the shelter", Zuko commented, picking a corn cookie from the nearby jar only to have said cookie liberated from him by Azula who was staring intently at her phone. Glaring slightly, he picked another cookie. "It was a battlefield."

"They were lucky the Blue Spirit was there", Lu Ten commented lightly, joining his cousins at the counter with a bowl of salad and a plate of fries. "But, who _are_ those other four?"

Iroh shrugged as he sipped a cup of tea. "I'm just glad we have more good guys in this city."

The corner of Azula's lips twitched ever so slightly. A smirk or grimace, no one could tell.

Mako, behind the counter with Iroh, arranging some empty cups and plates, were giddy inside. How he wished his shift would end, or those other people would go away, so he could talk to Korra and Bolin. But, there seemed to be no hope for that. He had never seen Bolin and Korra… well, _Korra_, that rattled and it worried him.

"Wait a minute", Azula spoke suddenly, loud enough to be heard by those at the corner. "What are you guys doing here? I thought you'd be at school for the cupcake stand."

Katara shot up suddenly, pale. "Oh, no…"

From across the street, they could hear the sound of the screaming. "Kataraaaaa!"

"_Suki_!" Katara squeaked as she raced out of the door.

"Whoa… what a perfect timing", Azula commented as she watched Katara ran across the street, back to the school. "I thought it only happens in movies."

She turned back to her phone at the exact time the door was opened and a tall pretty girl with long brown hair, pale skin, and blue eyes stepped in.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Dragon Flats Borough; Thursday, 25 July 2013, 09:34 PM)_

Chit Sang and Jee walked into the alley between a diner and a Subway, into the muffled darkness where their footsteps crunched on the pavement louder than their senses were comfortable with. Jee jumped a little at the sound of Chit Sang lighting a matchstick and he grumpily flicked that off the larger man's hand, and snatched the cigarette of his lips for good measure.

Grumbling slightly, Chit Sang stored his matchbox back into his coat and they reached the end of the alley, a square-shaped empty space framed by walls on two sides and a dark opened garage with what looked like a beat up van of little to no nominal value inside that pretty much filled the whole place and left no space to move around. Jee was a former Fire Nation Navy, highly trained and decorated, and was trained as law enforcers at the Republic Law Enforcer Training Center and had passed with flying colors.

He had been trained to pay attention to details and the garage intrigued him. He was just about to take out his pocket-sized flashlight from his coat –standard issue equipment for a detective like him- with the intention to look around the cramped garage when he noticed a movement behind him, indicated by the shifting of the dim moonlight that fell on the garage. Jee turned quickly, thrusting his hand into his coat for his gun.

The hooded figure straightened up from his landing gracefully; Chit Sang was leaning on the wall with a lit cigarette in his mouth. "About time", Chit Sang said, pushing himself off the wall. "You made quite a spectacle today."

"It was a miracle no civilians were injured", Jee could not hide a tone of content in his voice. "It was dangerous what you did."

"Please tell me you didn't believe that was a regular robbery", the hooded figure said in his electronically-masked voice; the voice made Jee want to cringe. "Thirty men armed with submachine guns and a rocket launcher, and the way they made their entrance."

"They were trained", Jee concluded coldly; he had suspicion, of course, after watching the footage they got from the store surveillance camera. "Earth Kingdom?"

The figure snorted. "Come now, Detective Jee", the figure said in an almost gleeful voice.

True, the United Republic had tumultuous relationship with the Earth Kingdom since the day of its foundation but no act of military aggression between the two nations had been recorded for the last two centuries. However, the tactic the robbers employed, the set-and-spread entry formation they used when they ambushed the store, with one heavily-armed man staying behind to cover their backs, and the ambush point to cover their retreat, it was a textbook Fire Nation tactic.

"They are on their way to detention facility", Chit Sang said. "Xuan Wu is specifically built for criminals like them", Chit Sang added.

Xuan Wu Correctional Facility was an infamous Republic City prison for metahumans and exceptionally violent criminals. The prison itself was a fort, manned by seasoned guards and former military, trained metahumans and meta-device users, and had a record of no-escape since its first operational day, and not from lack of trying.

The figure seemed to contemplate this for a moment. "And they are transported via prison transport, as per standard protocol, I assume?" he spoke with a colder tone. "Please tell me the police aren't still considering them regular robbers?"

"I spoke with the Chief", Jee said, a little offended. "We have taken extra precautions. They have a platoon of SWAT escorting the transport."

The figure took a few moments to consider this. "I put too much faith in the Republic City Police", he said finally. "The convoy will be attacked. I should have put my men on it."

"What?" Jee spat. "What are you—"

There was a siren blaring from afar and the two detectives instinctively turned to the direction of the sound. When they returned their attention to the conversation, the hooded figure was no more. "Yeah…" Chit Sang sighed as he flicked his cigarette bud away. "We better get used to that."

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden – Lin Beifong's Apartment; Thursday, 25 July 2013, 10:01 PM)_

Lin Beifong, sitting at her desk in her office, was mentally grumbling as she picked up her phone. The room was plain compared to her well-furbished apartment that bore expensive furniture imported from Earth Kingdom; her office had a fancy oaken desk that had its visual exquisiteness greatly diminished by stacks of paper, a desktop computer, and a beat-up chocolate box that she used to store some small scrap papers.

The corner of the room behind her housed two potted fake bamboo and the two walls at her sides were almost covered entirely by tall rows of file cabinets. The wall on the far side had a glass cabinet filled with bottles of alcohols.

The Chief, looking grumpy still in her night clothes of simple gray t-shirt and baggy pants, replied the person on the other line with some orders. She raised her hand and pointed her palm at the glass cabinet; the metal handle twisted and the door opened, allowing a metal tray bearing a porcelain bottle and an upturned glass to float in the air slowly to her desk.

"Then take the detour, if you must", she said to the phone while pouring herself a generous serving of the Air Nomad peach wine. "I want those people safely locked up in Xuan Wu the next time I call. Is that understood?"

"_Yes, ma'am."_

Lin Beifong slammed her phone and sighed. She raised her glass but the phone rang again. Growling, she picked it up.

"_Chief Beifong?"_

Lin recognized Jee's sound and clenched her jaw. "What do you want, Jee?" she asked coldly, not feeling kind after Jee's rude interruption at her office with his fiery request to reinforce the prisoners convoy, where she was discussing the exact same thing with her officers.

"_Chief, I have a reason to believe that the precaution we have taken may not be enough",_ Jee wasted no time to say.

"What the hell are you talking about, Jee?" Lin replied bitingly; the sitrep she had got from the convoy about the detour they had to take due to a truck overturned on the road began to gnaw on her mind but she ignored it.

"_I received some tips from the street that the convoy is being targeted",_ Jee said.

"And you want me to change the plan based on some hearsay?" Lin asked coldly.

"_Well…"_ Jee audibly gulped. _"It can't hurt to—"_

Lin hung up.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Dragon Flats Borough; Thursday, 25 July 2013, 10:18 PM)_

—CLICK—

"Nice", Chit Sang commented dryly as he bit into his sandwich, sitting in their car in front of the Subway parlor.

Jee glared at his partner and turned his ignition on.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Route 35; Thursday, 25 July 2013, 10:25 PM)_

SWAT Captain Song crawled on the ground, writhing slightly as he clutched his broken ribs. He took cover behind the upturned prisoner truck as bullets and screaming of people echoed in the air. Something exploded near him and it sent him flying a few meters away. Captain Song grunted as he hit the ground and he instinctively shielded his head from the debris. A radio fell on the ground near him and he grabbed it.

There was someone screaming behind him and he rolled over; a guard backed away as he fired his handgun. The guard's valiant resistance was ended by a blast of red energy that sent him flying to Song's side. Without any hesitation, Captain Song pressed the button on radio.

"Captain Song to HQ! Captain Song to HQ! We are under attack! I repeat, we are under—", a blast of red energy hit him and he screamed in pain as the sting and the concussive energy blasted him away; the radio was knocked off his hand.

Hurting all over, Captain Song forced himself to his feet and lashed his free arm wildly at the incoming large bald man with robotic left arm and leg, and the tattoo of the Third Eye on his forehead; his meta-device on his arm activated and a cord of black metal shot out from it, whipping at the bald man who caught it with ease with his left robotic hand. Captain Song tried to wrench the whip back but the bald man did not even move a muscle.

The bald cyborg grinned at his prey.

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

_(Republic City, East Sentries Military Base – the Waters' Residence; Friday, 26 July 2013, 07:40 AM)_

It was not easy but it had to be said.

Sitting at the dining table with her father and brother, Katara waited for her father to finish his sip of the coffee and his impeding verdict. Hakoda slowly put his cup back down and folded his newspaper. "Katara", he began patiently. "You must understand that this is highly unusual for women to—"

"There are other girls there, too", Katara protested. "This is not the South Pole, Dad."

"That is not the only problem", Hakoda sighed. "You are different, Katara. What if your gift—"

Sokka interjected. "I'll keep an eye on Katara, Dad", he said firmly.

Hakoda turned to his son and he saw the rare conviction on his eyes.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden – Lin Beifong's Apartment; Friday, 26 July 2013, 07:46 AM)_

Lin Beifong eyed her niece with sharp eyes and, naturally, she was tempted to deny the girl of her request. Not that she minded giving Toph what she wanted, but she suspected that his brother, Lao, would not be too happy to have his little precious girl do anything other than harmless school.

"Alright", Lin finally decided. "But…" she added quickly before she regretted the beam on Toph's face. "…with one condition."

**-A-I-R-**

_(Republic City, North Plain – the Storms' Residence; Friday, 26 July 2013, 07:47 AM)_

"I know, I know", Aang said excitedly as he navigated through the Storms' living room/dining room; cargo bay that had been painted bright orange and repurposed and refurbished with TV and a dining table in front of it, and an old orange love seat at the corner. The boy walked through the door way, leading to the kitchen with a couple of cereal bowls and returned with three apples in his hands. "I will be careful with my powers."

"And you will obey Master Piandao", Gyatso added, receiving an apple from the boy. "He has experience training metahumans."

"I will, Gyatso", Aang hugged the man's neck and grabbed his skateboard on the way out. Aang pressed the button on the wall, almost hidden around multitude of random old photographs glued to the wall; there was a loud whirr and the landing hatch slowly descended.

"Leave it open", Gyatso called from the dining table as he turned on the TV.

Aang waved one last time and supersped-up ahead, navigating the compound with ease and exiting the junkyard; not before stopping by Appa's doghouse –some old junked frame of a car Gyatso made into the shape of a house- and gave the giant dog its usual good morning greet.

Slowing down as he approached the wire gate, Aang rode his skateboard out to the city. He reached the school a few minutes before the orientation started and he had quite a nice lunch with Haru and On Ji. He had not seen Toph at all but, somehow, despite intellectually knowing that he had to be worried, he was not. His empathic ability told him that she was fine.

So, as soon as school was over for the day, he bid On Ji a hasty goodbye –they were at Math together- and made his way to Huo Guo, a part of town more affectionately known as Little Fire Nation.

True enough, Huo Guo was engulfed in red and gold, and the smell of spice and something fried lingered in the air. Aang felt his mouth watering as he caught the smell of banana fritter from the street vendor operating near a Tsungi horn player in front of a traditional teashop at his left, and he took out an apple from his pocket and ate is as he skateboarded deeper into the crowded street. It was almost 3:00 PM and Aang was hoping he did not get lost.

He had never been to Master Piandao's Martial Art Academy before but a few questions asked to the friendly citizens and Aang found himself standing before a majestic looking old building of Fire Nation style. The building was of an older era than the pagoda-shaped building, bearing the look of an ancient temple/fortress but with colors of red on the tiles and roofs, and gray granite walls, giving it a less otherworldly appearance. Tall walls framed the whole building and the grand gate was open.

Aang took a deep breath and stepped in.

It was so much better than he had imagined. Aang had vague memory of the Air Temple. He remembered older monks and apprentices climbing up and down the steps, practicing stances and traditional Air Nomad martial arts in the courtyard, and meditation in the temple halls.

Aang himself had been trained by Gyatso after… well… but these people seem to take it up farther. There was a raised platform in the middle of the huge courtyard where the youngest students were practicing under the tutelage of several older students. There were groups of students practicing higher forms; two dozens were practicing hard-hitting low-stance style that Aang was sure he had seen somewhere in Earth Kingdom during his travels with Gyatso, another group were moving slow and deep in concentration of their Tai Chi movement, another group were practicing with training posts, and many more. They were all of various age, size, and ethnicities, but they were all wearing black shirt and trainer pants. They wore no colors or belt signifying ethnicities or colors, but Aang had been told by Gyatso of Piandao's supposedly eccentricity regarding martial rank.

On the other side of the courtyard was a set of wide stairs leading to the building. Sitting on a simple looking set of chairs and a tea table between them was a man of tanned skin and hazel eyes, with short brown hair and trimmed moustache, sipping tea calmly as he watched his students trained. And, to Aang's surprise, sitting by the Master's side, was Toph.

Aang stepped in, going towards them; now, he knew why his empathic ability did not raise any alarm about not seeing Toph. Smiling a bit, despite the sudden realization that Toph could see him, he had just crossed half the distance where he was tackled and Haru held him in headlock. The taller boy took off his beanie and rubbed his head, laughing. "Glad you could make it, Aang", Haru grinned but faltered a bit at the sight of Aang's tattoo on his forehead.

"Thanks for recommending this place", Aang grinned back, snatching his hat back, trying not to make it awkward.

"Come on", Haru said, nudging his head towards the building, snapping Aang who was scanning his attire of dark shirt and trainers. "I'll introduce you to Master Piandao."

As they walked through the courtyard, Korra and Bolin walked out of the building, both were wearing the academy's uniform. "Huh… they still fit", Bolin said to Korra who was stretching her arms.

"Katara", Korra called inside the building. "Are you okay in there?"

"Yeah", Katara's voice echoed out. "I'm fine. Suki can help me with the uniform."

Korra grinned at Bolin. "Apparently, just as tomboy girl has problem with girlish clothes, girly girl has problem with simple clothes."

Inside the building, a boy with amber eyes and jet black hair looked out the window, leaning on the frame, smiling wispily at the courtyard. "Promising", he said, looking satisfied.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Goldenbell – Moonbay Park; Saturday, 27 July 2013, 11:23 AM)_

Azula leaned back on the park bench and stretched her back. She picked up her big heavy book and took a sip of her iced coffee, and resumed her reading of _Advanced Cybernetics Theory_ while Avi, the large gray and black husky, ran around, chasing the blue boomerang Sokka had invented. The device flew around on low altitude like some sort of twirling remote-controlled airplane for a few minutes before it flew back to Azula.

Sensing the incoming device, Azula raised her hand, ready to catch it without looking up from the chapter regarding Professor Jon Mori's theory of nerve-ending synchronization; a different hand caught it instead.

"Cool toy", the boy with amber eyes smiled.

Azula frowned and felt a bit alarmed. They boy was sitting next to her and she had not realized it. The amber-eyed boy had pale skin, his jet black hair had a short ponytail and quite messy, and he was wearing a slightly oversized long-sleeved t-shirt and baggy cargo trousers. Azula recognized him as the boy who was Lu Ten's friend, the one she supposedly knew as well.

"Thank you for the present", Azula said.

The boy smiled. "I couldn't find a cherry pie."

Azula snickered. "Pecan is my second favorite", she replied in tandem with the boy who said. "Pecan is your second favorite."

Azula frowned deeper, putting the book down on her lap. "How do you know that?"

"Lu Ten told me", the boy shrugged lightly. Avi, tired of waiting for the boomerang, decided to leap on the boy's lap and made a grab for the toy. "Hello there, little friend", the boy laughed as he ducked Avi's wet nose and threw the boomerang to the park.

Azula scrutinized the boy, trying to remember him; the boy sat back and watched Avi run around, trying to catch the boomerang, with a faint smile on his face.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Dragon Flats Borough; Saturday, 27 July 2013, 10:46 PM)_

Phoenix shot a burst of blue flame from her feet and propelled herself up in the air; Stealth dashed through the flame and sent several flying knives to the direction of the five-foot something man with wide shoulder and muscular build in red Fire Nation armor and masked helmet.

Fireman raised an arm and shielded his face; the knives bounced off his sturdy armor harmlessly. Acro appeared as soon as Fireman lowered his arm, knuckles crackling with blue tendrils of electricity. Fireman evaded three punches and one spinning kick effortlessly despite his build and Acro's superior agility, and retaliated with a swing of large arm. Phoenix appeared out of nowhere and kicked the arm back, staggering Fireman a few steps back. Stealth appeared out of the shadow behind Fireman with a sharp thin blade jutting out of her sleeve. Fireman defended against the slash of the ninjato with his bracer just in time.

Fireman pushed the blade away and, as the other two girls closed in, he leaped back; a device that had the appearance of a small arm cannon shot out from his bracer and he aimed it at the incoming girls. Fireman shot gout of flame and halted the advanced of the three girls.

"Very good", he commented gleefully, straightening out; the flickering flame on the ground cast an eerie shadow on him and his red armor. "And here I thought Republic City would be boring. I guess we all make mistakes sometimes."

Four dark figures leaped out of nowhere and landed behind Fireman. The robed one smirked and Phoenix felt unsettled by it. They were outnumbered but it was not the first time. However, having seen the four in action on TV, Phoenix did not like how the odds were stacked against them. They knew that the female, who had pulled twin daggers and held them ready in reversed grip, had the ability to turn herself invisible, and the big one, who punched his fist on his palm, probably had invulnerability. However, aside from being expert hand-to-hand and sword combatant, and superb archer, they knew very little of the robed one and the bowman respectively.

And it was quite startling that the archer let loose an arrow aimed at the one in red armor; and the female and the big one rushed to Fireman at once. Fireman leaped and delivered a spinning kick that sent the female one flying and held his ground against the strength of the big one who was almost twice bigger than him. Fireman, securing a firm footing, threw the big one over with a judo flip.

An arrow flew past him and he dodged, only to have himself blasted on the chest by red plasma bolt. Grunting, Fireman staggered back, rubbing his smoking chest. "I had a feeling I'd run into you guys", he said with a glee despite his eyes darting from one dark figure to another, sizing his chances.

Still had his gun aimed at Fireman, the hooded one turned his head a fraction to the girls. "Well", spoke a masked voice from under the hood. "If the three of you don't mind, we would very much like to deal with this one. We have some unfinished business."

"Not a cha—", Acro started but Phoenix raised a hand to silence her. Smirking, Phoenix said. "We'll watch."

The hooded one smirked back.

The big one, silent as ever, rushed and began the offensive. Swinging several missed punches, he was knocked back by Fireman's jabs on his jaw that did not seem to faze him, and a blast of flame from the flamethrower that pushed him several meters away and engulfed him in steady stream of inferno. Fireman relented his flame in favor of avoiding three quick arrows and was pushed back by the female's fast flurry of blades.

The hooded one kept his gun aimed, waiting for an opening; the big one, after putting out what little flame his armor caught, rushed ahead to give support. Fireman, despite the overwhelming odds against him, put up a good fight, Phoenix had to admit. Turning to Stealth and Acro, she nodded and they joined the fray.

Two blasts of blue flame from Phoenix staggered Fireman; Stealth's knives hit him hard on his shoulder, loosening his footing despite failing to penetrate his armor, and a blast of red plasma from the hooded one's gun knocked him down. The big one pounced like a bear but Fireman fired both his flamethrowers at him, pushing him back. The red-armored man rolled and pushed himself up to his feet just in time to evade Acro and her punches. Acro gave no room for breathing and delivered series of lightning-fast punches, scoring several hits at Fireman who grunted each time he was jabbed. The female one joined the assault on the other side and ended it with a successful leg sweep. Fireman grunted as he hit the ground.

Finally deciding to use one the tricks he had up his sleeve, the eye opening of Fireman's mask closed down, a fraction of second before he pressed his buckle hard. A hot searing flame erupted from every inch of his body, sending everyone nearby flying.

Acro yelped as she touched the ground, clutching the burnt part of her exposed midriff. The female and big one suffered no damage due to their armor and masks; Phoenix, Stealth, the hooded one, and the archer, having been fighting from a distance, were unscathed and they jumped right in to defend their comrades.

Stealth leaped in front of Acro, her ninjato ready; the archer, with the arrows ready, and the hooded one, now with a sword in his hand, and Phoenix formed a circle around the fire. As the flame subsided, however, the man in red armor was no more.


	5. Chapter 4 – Know Thy Enemy

**Chapter 4 – Know Thy Enemy**

Disclaimer: I own nothing

* * *

><p><em>(Republic City, Dragon Flats Borough; Sunday, 11 August 2013, 11:21 PM)<em>

The bald man in ragged black shirt and dirty jeans, wearing studded leather cuff and green snake tattoo on her scalp running down his neck, gave the young cashier of the convenient store a kick in the gut before he stormed off with a paper bag filled with money, accompanied by the blaring siren of the security system.

Laughing to himself, the bald man ran across the pretty much deserted sidewalk, shoving a pedestrian or two, cursing them with a colorful selection of the vocabularies while at it. He turned and entered the alley ahead, his usual shortcut; it led him to a wooden fence that he and his thin frame climbed with little difficulty.

He landed on the backyard of a humble house belonging to a Water Tribe family (once you drop on a random people's house often enough, you'd learn a thing or two about them eventually) and he kept running for what seemed like hours before he stopped at the pier, heaving but satisfied with the haul.

Plopping down behind a warehouse where he often crashed, the bald man put his bag on his lap and grabbed a handful of cash. He was half tempted to throw the papers over his head when a slender shadow with flipping ponytail fell upon him. Looking up, he saw a petite girl in red and gold outfit standing with one hands on her waist, framed by the bright summer moon on the cloudless night sky.

"You're at it again, Jak?" Phoenix sounded bored.

"I am NOT Jak!" the bald man shot up, clutching his money bag like he would a baby, looking pissed. "My name is Snake Man!" he shouted as every inch of his skin turned green and scaly.

Acro jumped down off nowhere. "Oh! Hi, Jak", she greeted the scaly bald man chirpily. "How's your mom's arthritis?"

"My name is SNAKE MAN!" Jak spat. "And she's doing better! Thanks for asking!"

All of a sudden, an otherworldly cold breeze flew over and the darkness of night got a little… well, darker. Jak shivered and shrunk visibly. "Um… i-is Stealth with you tonight?"

"Uh-huh", Phoenix said while Acro simply nodded with a huge grin on her face.

The paper bag fell with a pleasant sounding plop. "I give up."

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

**Heroes of Republic City**

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

_(Republic City, Mildew Hill – Sokka's Apartment; Monday, 12 August 2013, 09:30 AM)_

Sokka snored ever so loudly on his couch, lying on his stomach with his arms entangling himself in the oddest possible way, clad in nothing but his blue boxers, surrounded by a pile of thin blanket and a cacophony of chips bags and empty soda cans and bottles. His laptop was open and on the table, displaying what appeared to be a PDF file of a scientific paper, and the flat screen TV, the best looking and slightly out of place item in his humble and messy apartment, turned on automatically. Sokka set the timer at 9:30 AM, as always.

There was an action movie and the sound of the explosion woke the boy up. After a brief girlish scream and a pleasant fall from the couch, Sokka sleepily picked himself up and went on auto-pilot. Before he knew it, he had brushed his teeth, taken a quick shower, and, after ten minutes in his room, he dragged his feet to the front door and attempted to stuff one of his sneakers into his pocket.

His cellphone rang and he put his other shoe on his ear. "Hello?" he yawned.

His ringtone of _'We Are the Champions'_ blared on.

"Hello?" he said again once he found his phone in his bag. There was no answer. "Huh…" Sokka narrowed his eyes at the screen of his phone.

…_Private Number…_

"Strange", he commented to himself before he took off to the University.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – United Nations Academy; Monday, 12 August 2013, 09:46 AM)_

"Name one thing that I hate more than Mondays", Azula dragged her feet to the cafeteria with Mai, Ty Lee, Katara, and Suki. Unlike the other girls, who had shed their clothing to the more comfortable and summer friendly tank tops and shorts, Azula was wearing her usually baggy capri pants and dark hoodie, and dropped not a single sweat. In fact, the girls found it cooling to look at her flawless pale complexion; like looking at snow in the middle of summer.

"Cats", Mai said. "Melons", Katara added while checking her cellphone. "Cheerleaders", Ty Lee, a member of the school's cheerleading squad, pouted a bit. "Makeup", Suki said, smiling at Aang and Toph who was walking on the other side of the yard, going on the opposite direction. "Being shorter than Zuko", Mai added again. "Pickles", Ty Lee chirped.

"I said name _one_", Azula grumbled as they found an empty circular table in the garden and sat down. "Why do we have to stay and help with the welcoming party? In fact, why start preparation now! School won't start in a couple of months."

"Stop complaining", Katara sighed at the Fire Nation girl who had her head on her folded arms on the table. "If we take care of the initial preparation now, we won't have too much to do later."

Azula did not respond.

Even after the girls went and returned with trays of lunch, she did not stir and appeared to be sleeping.

It was not until her phone buzzed that she showed any sign of life.

Inside the not-so-deserted school, where students who volunteered were busy helping out with the cleaning and repainting of the walls, and general maintenance, Aang and Toph walked down the hallway where they soon were joined by Haru and a bunch of electrical wires.

"So", Haru grinned, carrying the box of wired. "How are you two doing with Master Piandao's training?"

Aang and Toph grunted. "Didn't know he could get that tough", Aang confessed.

"I asked him not to give me any special treatment because I'm blind. I regret that now", Toph sighed.

Haru laughed. "Don't worry", he reassured them. "The Master is actually pretty cool and lax. The trainers can be a bit of a stick. They say Master Piandao made his senior students instructors because he can't get tough on his students."

"I thought Master Piandao is a swordsman", Aang said, turning to Haru who was a student of the Master for a few months already.

"True, Master Piandao's specialty is sword", Haru explained. "But, he has also studied several other forms of martial arts. In his school, he had several other Masters too, like Master Jeong Jeong, a Chang Quang expert, and Master Kunyo, a… whatever expert, as teachers. Us students are encouraged to pursue a style of our own choosing", Haru then added. "After we finished the first month of basic training, of course."

They walked down the stairs, leading to the basement. "So, you two have any style in mind yet?"

"The most kickas –(a moth flew past them, fluttering its wings loudly)- style they have to offer. What would that be?" Toph grinned.

"Well, every style has its own strength and weaknesses", Haru pondered aloud.

"Which style did you choose?" Aang asked Haru.

"I chose Hung Gar", Haru said proudly. "My dad runs a Hung Gar school in the Southern Republic and he taught me a bit when I was a kid. I hope one day I can go home and help him run the school."

"That's nice", Toph muttered softly, stone-faced.

"What about you, Aang?" Haru asked. "Anything caught your interest yet?"

"Well…" Aang rubbed the back of his neck. "I was really hoping I can be accepted in the Ba Gua group", he laughed nervously.

"Ba Gua?" Haru nodded approvingly. "You'll fit right in. You have the perfect built for it, small and flexible, and you're light on your feet. I'm sure Master Yangcheng will be happy to have you in her class."

"By the way, I noticed that the _Charlie's Angels_ were there too every once in a while", Toph said unhappily, referencing to Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee. "They skipped Master Piandao's class a lot, huh?"

"Actually, they have graduated long before I joined", Haru entered the basement storeroom and put his load in there. "From what I heard, they've been training with Master Piandao since they were little."

Before Haru could offer more explanation, a sound of buzzing cellphone echoed loudly in the empty basement hallway.

"It's yours", Toph said, looking at Aang's general direction.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Monday, 12 August 2013, 10:14 AM)_

Mako frowned at his cellphone. A miscall from a private number. Strange…

He stored his cellphone back into his apron pocket and resumed his duty of clearing the register.

Iroh, sitting at the counter, flipped his newspaper nonchalantly, adjusting his glasses. "I heard you and your brother have been going back to Master Piandao's place."

Mako's frowned grew a little deeper. "Yes, with Korra too. How did you know that?"

Iroh sniggered. "Forgive us old folks. We do love to gossip sometimes", he smiled quaintly.

Mako smiled. "It has been awhile since we were there last. We were hoping Master Piandao would allow us back into the special class."

"And did he?" Iroh flipped another page, not taking his amber eyes off the paper.

"No", Mako replied. "Not until we do several weeks of basic training with the newbies. Master Piandao says we need the exercise to readjust our physiques to the training regimen."

"Master Piandao knows best", Iroh commented lightly, failing to hide his all-knowing smirk.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Sun Garden District; Monday, 12 August 2013, 10:29 AM)_

In the alleyway, facing the bustling traffic, he stood in the shadows, ready to begin his debut as a criminal. A super villain.

The large muscular man steeled himself as he took one step closer to the street, clad in nothing but his super villain costume of baggy pants and studded belt and bracers, bare-chested and displaying his rock-like muscle and the large tribal badger tattoo on his back. He wore no mask, for he wanted everyone to know him. He grinned again as veins and sweat popped on his bearded face and soft breeze rustled through his buzz-cut brown hair.

Throwing the last shred of hesitancy out of his mind, the large man dashed into the light.

A pale-skinned dark-haired teenager wearing casual clothes of dark-green cargo pants, a pair of brown sneakers, and a gray long-sleeved t shirt came out of nowhere, leaping into the alley, and crushed his fist on the man's face.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Location Unknown; Monday, 12 August 2013, 10:45 AM)_

In the dark room on plain concrete walls and floor, Lynx stretched and performed a graceful one-legged yoga position. A mechanical whir echoed into the room and part of the wall behind her slid and in walked the Fireman.

"Don't you have work to do?" the man asked condescendingly.

"Hmm, do I now?" Lynx bent her body all the way down and one leg up, her long black hair fanned on the floor.

"You are supposed to be dealing with the black hoods", Fireman snapped.

"Grouchy much?" Lynx teased, standing up. "I have a plan", she simply said.

Fireman waited for a few seconds before he growled. "Care to share?"

"Hmm, not really", the dark-clad female assumed another standing yoga position.

"I am responsible for all projects in Republic City", Fireman said firmly. "I have the right to know—"

"Chill out, old man", Lynx sighed and went back to standing normally, crossing her arms on her chest almost petulantly. "I have sent someone who is perfect to flush him out."

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – United Nations Academy; Monday, 12 August 2013, 11:00 AM)_

Katara checked her reflection on the bathroom mirror one last time before she turned her eyes back on the phone; a miscall from a private number. It was odd…

Absentmindedly, she paced back to the school gym, checking her phone for messages. Sokka sent her a text about his pack lunch and Katara impatiently reminded him that she would not be bringing him lunch today because she would be busy at school.

Entering the gym, the unfamiliar eerie quietness in the school that Katara found rather unsettling was replaced by the bustling of work by the students who were busy decorating the place. Suki and Ty Lee were sitting on the hardwood floor in the middle of the gym, surrounded by several students and numerous ribbons and fake flowers they were setting; Aang and the slightly unhappy Toph were with Mai and Miss Kwan, working on putting the long colorful ribbons along the walls; Azula and Haru were below the stage, fixing the sound system board, coordinating with Bolin who was repeating 'check… check…' onto the microphones; and on the side of the gym, sitting on the floor, was On Ji, grinning as she colored the giant paper sign that said _'Welcome, Freshmen'_.

And all around were students doing other tasks of bringing folded chairs and tables and stacking them in the corner, hanging decorative ribbons and flowers, sweeping and mopping the floor, and some, like the giggling group of girls surrounding Star, sitting on the floor in the corner, were just lazing around. Or the Storm kids, who were not really part of the work due to them being in primary grades; the oldest Jinora was sitting on the bench, half buried in a book almost too large for herself that Katara bet probably weighed more than the small girl, and the younger ones, Ikki and Meelo, were running around, laughing without a care in the world. They were there with Bolin who had to babysit them for the day.

Sighing, Katara fought the urge to march to Star and the group and yell at them to go back to work. She opted instead to join rejoin On Ji and finished their task quickly. But, of course, she could not concentrate enough on the job. Her mind was preoccupied with a lot of things and her limbs were still sore from her training with Master Pakku.

Soon though, she melted into her work, carefully brushing the background of the sign with a small brush and purple paint, chuckling as Bolin began rapping on the microphone. Katara caught the small curve on the corner of Principal Umma's mouth; a rare occurrence indeed as Principal Umma, the small, slightly hunched, old lady was known to be strict and fair, and quite humorless, though Katara knew better. Principal Umma was quite a kind old lady but she was always strict when it was a work-related setting and people often only come across her in her capacity as a principal.

Principal Umma unfurled her crossed arms and readjusted her glasses as her phone rang. She squinted at the phone screen and frowned as the phone stopped ringing. Azula joined her and Mr. Lee, the gym teacher, and muttered something that Katara could not hear, being in the other side of the gym that she was. The principal nodded and said something back, and Azula made her way to Katara.

"What were you talking about with Principal Umma?" Katara asked out of curiosity as Azula sat beside her and yawned.

"That we may need a new microphone for a backup", Azula pulled out a Snickers from her hoodie pocket and began to unwrap it. "We found one still in the box but it looked like somebody dropped it or something, about fifty years ago. The handle was cracked and crumbled when Haru picked it up."

"We should have more luck with the sign", Katara said happily, looking satisfied with the sign she and On Ji were still working on. "Mai has really outdone herself."

"It looks the same as the one she made last year to me", Azula said lazily, lying down on the floor. "But, then again, I have zero artistic sense, so what do I know."

"That is not true", Katara argued, dipping her brush on the paint bucket, thinking of the many drawing assignments Azula had made since they were children, the little clay vase with dragon carving encircling the side Azula made in the workshop, and, of course, the girl's musical talent and the hauntingly beautiful song she sang when Katara first heard her sing in the sixth grade. "You are surprisingly talented in art", Katara admitted plainly.

"I said I have no artistic sense, not talent", Azula stated, taking a bite of her candy bar.

Smirking at the girl's antic and On Ji's frown and clear misunderstanding of Azula's snobbish-sounding retort, Katara returned her attention back to her work. After knowing Azula since childhood, Katara knew of her casual blunt and honest statement that might have been misconstrued often as rudeness or arrogance, but she sometimes found this refreshing. It was a form of honesty in Azula's part, although a weird kind of that.

"By the way", Katara smiled a little at Azula's loud chewing. "The cheerleading squad will have openings soon."

"I would rather chug down that bucket of paint", Azula replied, staring at the ceiling on the gym absentmindedly.

Her phone buzzed and she fished it out of her pocket. It was a text from Lu Ten. "Do you know a place called Shinrin Diner?"

"Yeah", On Ji answered. "It's close by, at Rose Garden. They serve food from all around the world."

"I know where it is. What is their best dessert?" Azula asked again, still staring into her phone.

"Their Air Nomad pie is good", On Ji thought aloud. "I went there with Aang, Toph, and Haru the other day. Aang told us about the Air Nomad pie."

"Hmm…" Azula hummed, typing into her phone.

"Why do you ask? Are you going there?" On Ji asked back.

"Yup", Azula sat up quickly, still staring into her phone, shoving her half-eaten chocolate bar to Katara who took it. "Lu Ten's coming to pick me up for lunch. See you later."

"But, you already had lunch", Katara said; Azula was already on her way out, waving without turning back. "I swear, she eats more than Sokka", the blue-eyed girl sighed, taking a bit of the Snickers. "Curiously, she barely grew an inch since 7th grade. All those nutrients go thos her brain", she added to On Ji who chuckled just as the latter's cellphone rang for a second before it stopped.

On Ji checked her phone and found that it was a miscall from a private number.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Sun Garden District – Moony's Fritters Heaven; Monday, 12 August 2013, 11:31 AM)_

Crunchy sound of fritters was norm in this time of the day at the small dining place that was Moony's. The small elderly Earth Kingdom man would usually be found behind the counter, manning the registry machine, armed with the day's Ba Sing Se Daily or a long wooden Earth Kingdom smoking pipe, or both.

The sound of the heavy duty air sucker on the open kitchen behind him, right above the pair of large woks frying fritters nonstop, would never drown the sound of crunch from the woks or from the tables. Moony's fritters were renown throughout Republic City and his small, ten tables place, was frequented by citizens from many nationalities. Staying true to his Earth Kingdom heritage though, Moony had stubbornly clung to his savory fritter batter despite suggestion to add spices to his recipe by his Fire Nation patrons.

And the Boulder, the muscular bare-chested man with a large tribal badger tattoo on his back and a big bruise around his right eye, wondered if the boy in front of him was faking his enjoyment of the food. The boy looked Fire Nation enough, with his amber eyes and pale skin, and his lean built and jet black hair. The Boulder knew enough about Fire Nation and their preference for spicy food; they even spiced their tea and cakes!

Still, the boy ate with quite a gusto, finishing half the pile of their banana fritters and was already asking if the Boulder wanted to order seconds.

"No, thank you", the Boulder said. "The Boulder has a strict diet program… not this much starch after breakfast."

The boy chewed loudly and a bit peasant-ish, shattering the image of a well-raised Fire Nation upper class that the Boulder had on him earlier. "*munch* If you said so*munch*. I'll just order a small one", he pulled out the sleeve of his right arm to ease his movement.

Still unable to take his eyes and suspicion off the boy, the Boulder took a slow sip off his tea and finally asked. "The Boulder is still confused. Why did you punch the Boulder out of the blue and then treat the Boulder to lunch?"

The boy raised a finger briefly, silently asking the man to wait for him to sip a drink and swallow his food. "You do realize that you draw quite a lot of eyes here, right?" the boy pointed out thought the Boulder was pretty sure the boy's gusto in eating was just as conspicuous as the Boulder's bare-chested appearance and his tattoo.

"Yeah… about that…"

"You are not made for this", the boy said, picking up another fritter.

"Not made for what?" the Earth Kingdom man frowned.

"Villainy", the boy replied simply, pausing and looking deep into the Boulder's eyes for a moment before he resumed eating. "Or super villainy, if you're nitpicky about it", the boy shrugged.

The Boulder gulped, not only because he _was_ nitpicky about the 'super' in super villainy, but also because he had not told anyone about his plan to make his debut and somehow this stranger knew.

"You are made for something more", the boy said with softer, more understanding tone that was not affected by the grease on his mouth and fingers.

"I don't know what you're talking about", the Boulder said through locked jaws, fist tightening under the table.

The boy smacked his lips impatiently and wiped his mouth clean with a napkin. Dropping a fifty yuan bill on the table (a little more than twice the price), he motioned the Boulder to follow him out. Under the cloudless sky and bright sunlight, the boy stretched a bit and smiled to the sky.

"Now", the boy said. "Follow me."

The Boulder was about to take his first step when it hit him. "Wait", he said, turning to the boy and towering above him by at least two heads. "Why do I have to—"

"We're running on a tight schedule here", the boy interrupted and the Boulder saw his amber eyes sharpened. "You can turn around and continue with your worthless existence; underground fighting with normal people that are of no challenge for you, not even considered good enough to join meta-tournament, living off pittance, throwing off fights, calling yourself in the third person and all that, and earn barely enough to fill your belly, let alone pay all your bills. By all means, go! Go back to that life", the boy jabbed his finger at the direction behind the Boulder fiercely. Then, he smiled. "Come with me, don't come with me, it's your choice; always has been, always _will _be your choice", the boy smirked and turned back to the direction where he was going a bit. "If you do come, I can promise you that you might just find something worth fighting for… well, more than knocking down armed vehicles or whatever it is you had in mind, anyway. The choice is yours."

The boy turned and began walking without waiting for the Boulder to follow.

By God, the Boulder knew not what he was supposed to do now. He had everything planned… there was supposed to be an armed money van from Sun Garden Mall that he had staked out for weeks, he had memorized its route and had his escape route all planned out.

A single punch ruined everything and his eye was still throbbing.

"Wait!" the Boulder called out to the boy who was already halfway down the block. "Will you at least tell me your name?"

"Nope!" the boy shouted back, not stopping or looking back.

The Boulder sighed and began jogging down the sidewalk after the boy.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Rookwood– Republic Report; Monday, 12 August 2013, 11:55 AM)_

Rookwood, named so due to the district being filled with skyscrapers, housed the Republic Report building; the grand hundred-storey building with its distinctive rotating stylized 'RR' on top. Being a leading force in newspaper business, Republic Report employed over a hundred reporters and news staff, provided news from all over the globe, and catered to subscribers from all over the world.

On top of the building, stood a tall slim young woman in a dark pantsuit. Her skin was flawless in its pale pearl-like complexion, her dark voluminous hair untied and fluttered slightly in the slow summer breeze. She was beautiful in any imaginable way, delicately featured cheek and heart-shaped jaw, red crimson lips, thin brows seemingly clashed with her strikingly bright and sharp blue eyes, unblinking behind her thick-rimmed glasses.

She appeared to be staring at the city below while, in truth, she was watching a surveillance feed on the inside of her high-tech glasses. The feed was invisible from the front and only she could see it, and it showed the traffic below. The woman tapped the side of the glass rim once and the feed changed to a different traffic camera.

Sighing lowly, she tapped the glasses twice quickly and the whole contraption turned off.

"Are we crossing lines now?" the young woman said icily, crossing her arms and looking towards the city below.

Leaning on the ventilation shaft above the exit, the middle-aged one-eyed man looked unsurprised. His hair was all white and ponytailed, his thick moustache that connected to his sideburns was well-trimmed, his built was rather short but sturdy and muscular under his trench coat, army trousers and combat boots. To complement his unusual appearance was the eye patch on his right eye.

"I believe coming without my armor is a sign of fair play", the middle-aged man said, jumping down effortlessly.

"I already know who you are, so…" the woman grumbled.

"And I don't know who you are?" the middle-aged man laughed; the woman had to admit he sounded different without his mask. "I am in charge of every project in Republic City, new _and_ ongoing."

Lynx hated it when people pulled ranks on her. She had never wanted any position of power… well, not _too much_ power like a chapter leader, but she hated it when people looked down on her. Still, she had to admit, Fireman was a pretty good choice for a chapter leader. Lynx had worked with the man before and knew of Fireman's strict but fair nature, and that he was not afraid to get his hands dirty. A leader who leads by example.

But, it does not mean she had to like him.

"What do you want?" Lynx asked coldly, not taking her eyes off the city.

She heard the shuffling of Fireman's footsteps as the man walked towards her and stood by her. It never ceased to amaze Lynx the fact that Fireman was a few inches shorter than her and yet appeared as if he was ten feet tall.

"I am checking up on you. I want an update on your task", Fireman said, shoving his hand inside the pocket of his coat.

"It's about to begin", Lynx simply said.

"You know who he is, don't you?" Fireman concluded sharply.

"I have my suspicion", Lynx tapped her glasses again.

Fireman waited for more. "Well?" he said finally. "Who is he?"

"An old friend", the woman smirked. She was not expecting Fireman to get physical and grabbed her jaw. Next thing she knew, she was staring into the amber eye of the man who definitely did not look so short anymore, feeling the cold metal of the man's Beretta under her left jaw.

"I do not tolerate impudence", Fireman hissed, pulling the woman closer.

Lynx simply smirked and pressed her small Walther-PPK deeper onto the man's gut.

Fireman's stare held for a few more seconds before he let go of Lynx, neither stopped aiming their guns at the other.

"So, the Fireman _does_ have a boiling point", Lynx sneered, readjusting her aim at the man's heart. "You should learn to trust your men more."

"Oh, I trust my _men_", Fireman snarled.

Lynx tilted her head slightly, looking annoyed. "Sexist jerk", she muttered before she stored her gun back under her jacket and returned to watching the street below, rubbing on the side rim of her glasses, manipulating the zoom of the binocular function on her glasses.

Across the street from the Republic Report building, a teenager of lean muscular built, in gray long-sleeved T shirt and dark green cargo pants walked leisurely on the sidewalk and stopped right in front of the building.

He looked up and his amber eyes, to Lynx's surprised, met her blue ones. The teenage smiled and did not show any sign of noticing the loud screeching of tires and a dark and tinted-glass van rounded around the corner, garnering screams from the pedestrians and a peal of honks from other drivers, and sped up towards the boy.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Rookwood; Monday, 12 August 2013, 11:58 AM)_

Truly, the Boulder did not know why he was doing this. He glanced at his new wristwatch every now and then, black and digital, with thick cord that made it look almost like an armband. The boy said at exactly 12 noon, the Boulder would have to run; which added to the list of the things the Boulder would have to ask the boy someday, of how he knew of the Boulder's metahuman abilities. Or why he had to wear the ridiculous green wrestler mask with the pattern of a rock wall.

Still, deciding to just screw it, when the digital watch struck 00:00, the Boulder dashed forward and made a beeline from the alleyway across the street along the crosswalk of the street that, conveniently, had the red light on. He accelerated into the alleyway across the street, came out between a coffee shop and a barbershop, noticing the boy standing in front of the former, and, without hesitation, rammed into the first thing that stood in his way, as instructed by the boy: a dark van with tinted glass.

The vehicle, as incredulous as it sounds, toppled and flew sideways, bounced on the ground once, and rolled on the ground and ended up upturned like a turtle on the other side of the road, windows smashed and armed men in dark tactical suit and strange mask of cat creatures groaned and they looked messed up pretty bad.

Some of them were clearly unconscious; the few who were not tried to groggily exit the van unsuccessfully. The Boulder stood there, unscathed but lightheaded from what just happened, unsure of what to do next. He turned around wildly to the stares, the murmur, and the cellphone cameras of the nearby pedestrians and noticed that the boy had vanished.

Snapping himself out of the daze, he turned tail and ran back from where he came from and followed his escape plan. Five minutes of running, he found himself inside a multi-storey clothes store building, the fifth floor where they sold Halloween costumes, where he fitted right in without arousing too much suspicion.

The Boulder walk fast into the nearby fitting room and locked the door behind him. Taking off his mask, he let go of the breath he did not realize he was holding. Leaning his back on the wall, he slid down and tried to collect his thought.

He was a hero now. A super hero…

A red blinking light on his wristwatch caught his attention and, unsurely, the Boulder tapped it. A holographic screen popped out and hovered above his wrist, displaying a communication with the boy.

The Fire Nation boy smiled and looked amused.

"Well done", he commended. "Congratulations, you have taken the first step of becoming the master of your own fate."

"What's next?" the Boulder asked and even he noticed that he sounded tired.

"I will contact you when I need you, and I _will_ need you", the boy nodded a little. "Thank you", he said sincerely before the screen blinked off.

"Wait—", the Boulder sighed.

Burying his face on his large palm, the man gritted his teeth, not sure what to feel…

…_the master of your own fate…_

"It does sound good", the Boulder muttered to himself, slowly grinning to himself.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Rookwood– Republic Report; Monday, 12 August 2013, 12:09 PM)_

The boy turned off his cellphone and looked up to the panels above the elevator doors. Putting his cellphone away in his pockets, he took off a rubber band from his wrist and tied his hair with it, clearing his face and range of vision.

At the 25th floor, the elevator stopped. Sighing, the boy pressed down on the close door button but the doors slid open anyway.

A small man a little shorter than the teenager stood there, resplendent in his suit, spiky brown hair and full beard well-groomed, framed at his right and left by two tall men in full tactical suit and armed with automatic guns.

The small man smiled quaintly at the boy, whose brows were raised a bit, and dismissed the two armed men with a single gesture. The bearded man stepped into the elevator and stood beside the boy, nodding slightly at him as a greeting, before he closed the door.

A second or two after the elevator moved, the bearded man reached out to the button panel and pressed his thumb on a metal square below the buttons that masquerade as a locked panel box. There was a faint beeping before the panel swung open and revealed beneath it a black button that the man pressed.

"This button will ensure our elevator won't get stopped", he explained to the boy.

"Good to know", the boy titled his head slightly.

They stood and rode the elevator for a few more floors in silence.

At the 33rd floor. "Candies?" the boy fished out several colorful candies from his pocket and offered them to the man.

The man held out a hand and shook his head, smiling politely.

Shrugging, the boy helped himself to a candy and put the rest away inside his pocket.

…35th…

…36th…

They threw the first punch at the same time, blocking them in tandem. Numerous lightning fast strikes were exchanged in the tight space and, at the 40th floor, the bearded man delivered a side kick that the boy blocked with his raised leg.

A plain front kick from the boy, the man sidestepped; the boy threw himself with his forearms up front at the man, pressing down on his neck with his forearm. With a surprising strength, the bearded man pushed the boy away and landed several right-handed jabs at the boy who shielded himself with his raised arm. The boy ducked the fifth blow and let it sailed above his head. He began raining fast punches of his own, having all of them deflected by the bearded man's sturdy defense, and evaded a fast front kick before it connected with his gut.

The powerful kick left a dent on the inner wall of the elevator.

The boy glanced at the dent for a moment before he turned to the man who was ready to strike; he spat the candy in his mouth at the man's face, breaking the latter's focus, and capitalized by scoring two fast jabs on the man's face, one on the rib, and a kick on the abdomen.

The bearded man recovered quickly and caught the boy's arm; the boy used his weight and rammed the man onto the wall. The man retaliated by swinging his fist to the boy's gut; not much damage on such close range but it was enough to make the boy relent. The man pushed the boy away and they were back to square one.

A ding resounded inside the elevator, and the two fighters turned to the panel above the doors. They have arrived at the top floor and promptly they tidied up their clothing before the doors slid open. As the elevator open to a hallway leading to a fancy looking double door ahead, the bearded man reverted back to his quaint self and assumed the role of a polite guide.

Walking a step behind the bearded man, the boy followed him towards the door and let the man open the door for him, leading him into the lavish office. Inside, a young woman was sitting behind a desk, staring at him sharply; Lynx wore a cold mask of a face and Fireman was standing at the side, looking out the window. The office was ridiculously spacious, with a set of couch and TV, and still plenty of empty space around.

"That would be all, Eli", Lynx said to the bearded man. The latter nodded curtly and exited the room, closing the door behind him.

Calmly, the boy paced across the room and sat in front of Lynx.

"You look well", Lynx commented, locking her blue eyes on the boy's amber.

"Funny", Fireman said without turning towards them. "I never would have guessed a Fire Nation nobleman would venture so far out of the homeland."

"Well, we must all have hobbies", the boy said lightly, crossing his legs and leaning back on his seat. "Are you not going to offer me a drink…" he smirked at Lynx. "…sister?"

Fireman turned so fast, it was a wonder he did not lose balance. "Well, this is interesting…"

"I'm sure, it is, Colonel", the boy said, smirking slyly at the slightly stunned middle-aged man. "I'll go straight to business. I want you and your goons to leave Republic City –no, stay with me", he raised a finger at Fireman before he could interrupt. "You have seen what my men and I can do, and I assure you, you haven't seen anything yet; and it was one man against a full team of your highly-trained grunts."

The boy uncrossed his legs and sat straighter, positioning his seat so he was looking at both Lynx and Fireman. "I have more men and resources, the extent of which you know nothing about", the boy stated plainly. "And, I have intimate knowledge of your bases of operations. For example, while you…" he tilted his head at Lynx. "…were too busy arranging a hit team to test me, and you…" he pointed at Fireman. "…were too busy playing cloak and dagger, a field that was far from being your expertise, especially when you are playing on the same field as a master of subterfuge like her…" he jabbed his thumb at Lynx's direction. "… I managed to keep your focus on me; I, the one soldier in our cause, an unimportant factor in this whole equation, and subjected three of your facilities to attack."

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Yue Bay; Monday, 12 August 2013, 12:15 PM)_

The sound of waves could not drown the explosion that leveled the secret facility belonging to the Society. On the outside, it was a factory belonging to Liang Corp, a multi-billion company that manufactured a wide array of product; this was supposed to be their car factory but they had an underground facility that produces tanks and armored vehicles illegally.

Satisfied with his work, the large hooded man crushed the remote in his hand like it was made of wafer and walked away.

_(Northern Republic, Makapu Mountain; Monday, 12 August 2013, 12:15 PM)_

Inside the volcano, they had built a small research facility. Years ago, some scientists working for the Society found a way to manipulate lava and harness the heat energy as power source; Fireman was particularly excited about this.

The laboratory was small and built into the mountain. It had a light security detail, owing to its nature of being built blending into the surrounding. It had a dozen of guards and about ten scientists working on the project.

The archer had dispatched all of them in less than a minute. After locking the scientists in the bathroom and evacuating the last of the wounded guards out of the main lab, he hacked into the system and uploaded a virus that destroyed the mainframe.

_(Republic City, Kedaya District; Monday, 12 August 2013, 12:15 PM)_

Two fire trucks had been dispatched in response to a fire at Firma Chemistry Research and Development. It was a small division, a building of two-storey that, on the front, was working on quality control only. But, of course, the Society had an established meta-device factory inside to arm their men.

The fire was started at the locker room and the alarm had forced most of their personnel to evacuate, leaving it very easy for the hooded female to infiltrate the building with her power of invisibility, and to pickpocket a security card on her way in. It was exceedingly easy for her to infiltrate the main lab and infected the computers with a virus.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Rookwood– Republic Report; Monday, 12 August 2013, 12:17 PM)_

The boy helped himself to Lynx's stash of gummy worms inside a wooden pineapple ornament on Lynx's desk, watching in contentment while Fireman answered the rapid calls from his cellphone. Lynx had her elbows on the table and hid her small smirk behind her netted hands; oh, how she loved watching Fireman squirm.

Pressing the end call button harder than necessary, Fireman threw his phone on the nearby couch and turned to the boy, pulling his Beretta smoothly and aiming it at the boy's head.

"Really, Colonel?" the boy narrowed his eyes condescendingly. "By all means, shoot me. And you will have the full wrath of my family, not to mention my Riders, raining down on you."

Fireman did not seem to care, anger burning in his eyes.

It was Lynx who moved first, throwing a pen at Fireman's gun, deflecting the aim of the gun and causing it to accidentally misfire at the floor. The boy did not move a muscle, chewing his gummy worm still, enjoying the fight scene between Lynx, who leaped over the desk, and Fireman, who lunged at the woman and still armed with the gun.

The boy raised his legs on the chair calmly, popping a gummy worm into his mouth; just in time to avoid a misfire from Fireman.

Fireman swung his left fist towards Lynx but the woman leaned sideways along the swing, bent over, supported herself with one hand, and swung her legs up, kicking Fireman on the face. She hopped back on her feet and deflected Fireman's armed hand, evading a shot that sailed towards the boy behind her. The bullet flew across the side of the boy's face a hair's breadth away but he showed no sign of worrying and did not even flinch.

Fireman and Lynx exchanged several more blows before they broke away a few feet away from each other.

"What the hell are you doing, Lynx?!" Fireman demanded.

"Stopping you from ruining everything", Lynx hissed menacingly.

Fireman's cellphone rang suddenly. Lynx, being the closest to it, picked it up and threw it to the man. Not breaking eye contact, Fireman answered the call and put the phone on his ear. Whoever it was on the other side of the line did not give Fireman a chance to say anything but, "Understood…" at the end of the conversation.

Lowering his gun, Fireman turned to the smug looking boy, looking like he was ready to explode. "You are free to go."

"Oh, I am. Always am", the boy replied, dusting his hands.

He stood and straightened his shirt. "Well, I believe I've had enough excitement for a day. Your… er, what the polite term…? …_lapdog_ won't attack me, will he?"

Lynx narrowed her eyes sharply. Sighing, she relaxed her stance and took off her glasses. Walking to her desk, she took off her jacket and threw it to her chair, revealing a thin red shirt underneath.

"No, no one will attack you", Lynx muttered, sending a sharp warning glare at Fireman and grabbing the boy by the elbow, dragging him out with her. "You and I are long overdue for a talk."

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden – Shinrin Diner; Monday, 12 August 2013, 12:46 PM)_

Azula squirted more maple syrup into a saucer and dipped her French fries in it.

"That is nasty", Lu Ten commented bluntly.

Zuko ate his meatloaf sandwich silently.

"Want some?" Azula shoved a bunch of fries to Lu Ten who dodged.

"No, eww!" Lu Ten pushed the girl's hand away. "Eat that with ketchup or something!"

"Ketchup is boring", Azula pouted but obeyed anyway. She took Zuko's saucer that was unused and squirted a generous amount of ketchup in it.

"Atta girl", Lu Ten grinned, picking up his fork.

"I want some", Azula said, allowing Lu Ten to feed her some of his noodle. "It's chewy", Azula commented with her mouth full.

"Earth Kingdom noodles are thicker", Lu Ten said.

"I don't like noodles", Azula shrugged, picking up her burger. "He's here again."

Lu Ten and Zuko turned to the direction of Azula's eyes.

In the corner of the diner, the boy who was apparently their acquaintance from Fire Nation sat with a woman of pale skin, long dark hair, and blue eyes, and they appeared to be in a deep serious conversation.

Lu Ten chuckled a bit and hastened his chewing. He cleaned his plate in record time, wiped his mouth clean, and drained his glass. "You know I love spending time with you two", he said to Zuko and Azula as he got up from his chair. "But, Lu Ten gotta go", he winked and moved to the other table.

Lu Ten stopped by and was greeted by a sweet smile from Lynx. They talked briefly before Lu Ten leaned towards the woman and kissed her on the lips, much to Azula and Zuko's surprise.

"Is that a good sign?" Azula asked Zuko. "Lu Ten has a girlfriend. It means he's going to stop spoiling me."

Zuko shook his head exasperatedly and resumed with his lunch, barely registering Lu Ten who left hand-in-hand with the girl, leaving the boy alone at the table. Azula could barely contain her curiosity and staring at the boy.

"Do you remember who he is?" Azula asked Zuko, not taking her eyes off the boy.

Zuko turned around to the boy a bit and back to Azula. "I'm surprised you don't", Zuko said. "I remember how—"

He froze.

"… You know what", Zuko stole a glance at the boy before continuing. "I… I don't think I remember him at all…" Zuko's frown grew deeper. "His face looks familiar, though. What do you say his name was again?"

"It's—"

A scream from outside the diner pierced the sound of chatters and drew everyone's attention to the windows. It was followed by the roar of motorbikes.

A dozen of them flooded the street, ridden by men and women with rough exterior, pooling in the middle of the road, blocking the traffic. At the front of the convoy was a tall slim teenager, no more than eighteen by the looks of him. Skin slightly tanned, brown hair messy, and his grin had a blade of weed lodged in between. The boy took off his shade and descended his bike, grinning wide at the city.

"Freedom Fighters!" he roared. "You know what to do!"

At his short command, the men and women, most were older than him, cheered and began ransacking the neighborhood and attacking the establishments. Bikers were on the pedestrian walk, paving through, hitting people and kicking those who managed to evade them; some were on foot, smashing windows and cars with bats and crowbars; and the leader, with a swagger, entered Shinrin Diner, attracted by the screaming patrons who were being led to the backdoor by Baba.

The leader entered through the door with civility, freezing everybody in it.

Zuko, seemingly frozen in his seat still with Azula, tensed up and balled his fist on the table. He was about to rise and fight the delinquent but Azula reached out to his fist and gripped it tight; her eyes swept briefly to the mysterious boy's table that was now empty before they locked on the intruder's brown ones.

"Good afternoon", the hooligan greeted the Diner, walking in like he owned the place. "Name's Jet. Now, if you don't mind, me and my bo—"

Azula grabbed a fork and stabbed him on the thigh as he got within range.

Zuko stood up, balancing himself on the table with both hands, leaped over the table sideways, and delivered an acrobatic drop kick on Jet's chest in tandem with Azula who jumped and spun, sending a graceful spinning kick on her own to Jet's face. The Kai siblings sent the delinquent flying through the window.

Groaning, Jet picked himself up; his gritted teeth revealed to be a grin.

"Oh, you've done it now", he said, pulling the fork that was lodge in his thigh, and a shard of glass on his belly.

Peculiar green light shone from the wound and left his injuries healed.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden; Monday, 12 August 2013, 01:15 PM)_

On top of a building, overlooking the chaos at the heart of Rose Garden, Lynx stood, arms crossed. Her dark hair fluttered in the wind, scattering pleasant scent of strawberry. The Fire Nation boy beside her did not look happy.

"I like Rose Garden", he complained.

"You always do have a soft spot for these… New Age ideas", Lynx snorted. "Unity is an illusion."

"Rose Garden will prove you wrong", the boy sighed. "I do hope your ice cold heart will one day thaw."

Lynx's jaw tightened for a fraction.

"What about those men and resources that you bragged about? Aren't you going to send them there?" Lynx taunted.

"Aww… you organized a riot just for me? I'm so touched", the boy smirked and then added. "In a… n-non-sexual way, of course."

Lynx closed her eyes and suppressed the urge to shoot the boy in the kneecap. "As much as I want to get rid of you, finally –stay with me", Lynx said sharply at the boy's look of hurt and his attempt to interrupt. "You know that this isn't my style. I prefer subtlety."

"Of course, I do", the boy shrugged. "Classical Fire Nation Military tactic: first strike to make a statement. This is the Colonel's way of letting the City know that he is here to stay."

"He _is_ tacky", Lynx nodded.

"Metas?" the boy asked, watching an armored police van arrived, under heavy resistance from the Freedom Fighters who rained down rocks, bats, trashcan, and anything they could throw.

"Some", Lynx said. "Most are not, thought they have some device users."

As she said that, one of the Fighters, a large man in sleeveless leather vest and a bandana, tapped a strange device on his forearm and his skin turned metallic.

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – United Nations Academy; Monday, 12 August 2013, 01:17 PM)_

Katara gasped along with the others as they watched the meta-human among the Freedom Fighters, the one who just turned himself metallic, ran and tackled through a barricade of SWAT team and their anti-riot shields in the live news feed they were watching on her phone.

"Ouch… that looks bad", Bolin commented at the metal man who now began raining down heavy punches at the nearby policemen.

"Oh yeah, _definitely_", Toph said sarcastically, making things awkward.

"Um… well, one of the rioters just turn into metal", Aang grinned weakly.

"I'd pay to see that", Toph crossed her arms petulantly and pouted.

"I'm worried", Katara muttered, feeling cold to the stomach. "Azula said she's meeting her cousin there for lunch."

Ty Lee and Mai exchanged a grim look.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden; Monday, 12 August 2013, 01:18 PM)_

"Would you think any less of me if I picked this up?" the Fire Nation boy raised his buzzing phone.

"Yes", Lynx said out of spite.

"Hmm… well, we _are_ enemies", he shrugged and answered it anyway and pressed it to his ears, not saying a word. He listened for about ten seconds and hung up.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Yanggu Wharf; Monday, 12 August 2013, 01:19 PM)_

"He hung up", Chit Sang said to Jee, shoving his cellphone back into his pocket, both were standing on either side of their car.

"Doesn't matter. We've done our part", Jee said, taking his lit cigarette off his mouth and blowing a puff of smoke.

"I thought you don't smoke", Chit Sang said, entering their car while Jee took another drag before he flicked his cigarette into a trail of petrol that led to the warehouse behind them. It lit the fire that trailed to the building and set off an explosion.

Jee, starting the car, did not answer and simply drove away in silence.

Shaking his head slightly, Chit Sang turned to their passengers and smiled kindly. "So, you're the one they're called the Machinist", he grinned and then added reassuringly. "It will be alright."

The Machinist, a small middle-aged man with balding head, save for patches of tangled brown hair at the sides, with big round glasses, patchy brows, and left hand wrapped in dirty bloody bandage, shivered and curled up in a fetal position on the back seat, clad in nothing but a dirty ragged thin shirt and shorts, and was being tended by a grim looking Hakoda.

"It will be alright", Chit Sang said. "You are safe now."

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden; Monday, 12 August 2013, 01:21 PM)_

Zuko dragged his sister along as they escaped through the backdoor of the Diner, running now across the street as police cruisers blared past them. Azula stomped her heel down and stopped, nearly toppling Zuko over.

"What are you doing? We have to run!" Zuko barked, seizing back Azula's wrist.

"We can take them", Azula said flatly. _"Well, _I _can take them",_ she corrected mentally.

"Don't be stupid", Zuko replied gruffly, taking her by the wrist and resumed their escape. "You're not putting yourself in danger by going up against thugs like them!"

"Thugs?" Jet's voice came out of nowhere, startling the siblings. He leaped down from a nearby building and smirked at the siblings. "That's rude."

Zuko promptly stepped in front of Azula protectively, assuming a fighting stance; Azula did the same behind her brother and fought the urge to roll her eyes.

"We are no thugs", Jet said, pulling out the cork on the bottle of wine he must have seized from the Diner with his teeth and spat it away. "We are the Freedom Fighters", he pulled out the bandana he was wearing around his neck and stuff it partially into the bottle. "We fight to deliberate people from the oppression of –WHOA!" he leaped sideways just in time to evade a blast of blue flame from Azula. "My, my… are we full of surprises today", he grinned, lowering his stance, not taking his eyes off the girl.

Azula stepped away from the protection of her bewildered brother that she certainly did not need, and punched two blasts of fire that Jet evaded easily. She performed a wide leg sweep followed by a jumping spinning kick; Jet jumped over the low flame clumsily and bent backward just in time to avoid the high one. The second flame sailed over him, burning the blade of grass in his mouth and the bushes behind him but did not harm him.

Regaining his footing, spitting the burning grass clenched between his teeth, Jet was not ready for Zuko's unexpected fist ramming his face. Zuko sent a barrage of fast punches and a leg sweep that brought Jet to the ground; the Molotov in his hand caught on fire from the ground but both boys were too absorbed in their brawl to notice.

Zuko bent down and grabbed Jet by the collar; Jet instinctively went on the offensive and smashed the Molotov on the side of Zuko's face.

Zuko screamed as the flame ate the flesh of his face.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Tsumata; Monday, 12 August 2013, 09:15 PM)_

The old, slightly hunched man flipped his newspaper without really reading, sitting on a bench in front of a Fire Nation restaurant. The streets of Tsumata were already thinning, filled mostly with what the old man believed to be the residential district's dwellers, out to have late dinner.

The old man's ears caught the bell above the door of the restaurant behind him ringing; from the corner of his trained emerald eyes, he noticed Fireman in his civilian outfit exiting the restaurant, holding a takeout bag.

Pulling his hat lower, the old man rolled his newspaper, grabbed his walking cane, and stood up. Inconspicuously, he trailed the Fireman back to his apartment, the old man presumed. They walked past several blocks and, at the corner of the block, Fireman made a left turn at the travel agency office; indeed, the direction of his apartment.

Old Man Wojin, a seasoned spy and master ninja assassin, sensed something was wrong. He straightened up, leaving no trace of his hunched old man disguise, and discarded his newspaper, gripping his cane with two hands now. With his left hand, he gripped the cane handle and pulled it a little, revealing the cane to be a concealed sword.

Pressing his back on the wall at the corner, he regulated his breath and—

—BOOM—

The explosion took down the wall of the travel agency and sent Old Man Wojin flying to the ground. People began to scream and run to safety as five figures in red appeared from the corner. Some of them were wearing armors and their armors might be different from one another but it was painfully obvious that they were Fire Nation armor and their similarities to Fireman's infamous battle armor were impossible to go unnoticed. One of them was a large man who was bare-chested, save for a thick pauldron on his right shoulder.

Grunting, Old Wojin picked himself up, sizing up his opponents.

Five of them; a barehanded one in the middle, an archer, a guan dao user, a masked man, and a chain user. Wojin had heard of the Rough Rhinos but he never had the displeasure of facing them in combat. Pulling his ninjato free and holding it in reverse grip left-handed, he lunged.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tsumata – Fireman's Apartment; Monday, 12 August 2013, 10:51 PM)_

"Useless", Fireman cursed as he put down his phone on the couch, having just received the report from Mongke. He resumed his one-armed push-up in his the almost bare living room of his modest apartment, bare-chested and displaying his chiseled muscles and numerous battle scars, and a larger Fire Nation insignia tattoo on his back, watching the news on TV that reported the riot started by the Freedom Fighters earlier that day.

At least, his plans went on without a hitch, he mentally grumbled.

Losing three facilities and a valuable asset still stung though, especially the lava project. He liked that project and was hoping they could upgrade his flamethrower gears.

Still, at least he got Wojin. Fireman grinned as he imagined the shock in the smug boy's face when he heard about Wojin's capture. It took the Rhinos one hour to subdue Wojin and Yeh-Lu, the Bombardier, would need new limbs, but Fireman believed he had disarmed his opponent of a valuable ally. Standing up, Fireman decided to pay Wojin a visit that very night.


	6. Chapter 5 - Origins

**Chapter 5 – Origins**

Disclaimer: I own nothing

* * *

><p><em>(Republic City, Location Unknown; Friday, 30 August 2013, 08:00 AM)<em>

Fireman, in his complete battle armor, stepped into the middle of the dark room. He recounted his plans and strategies, all the preparation he had done, and, finding all to be satisfactory, he called to the dark. "Computer, comm. Calling all active cells."

Numerous holographic screens popped up, floating in the air in front of him, displaying every group under his command, filled by colorful personnel. Among them were Lynx in her secret lair, Mongke and his Rhinos, the Combustion Man, several men and women in lab coats, some people in tactical suits, and many others.

"It's time", Fireman declared. "The Shadow Society hereby claims ownership of the Republic City."

Most of the people in the screens cheered; Lynx not included.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

**Heroes of Republic City**

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Air Temple Island; Friday, 30 August 2013, 08:00 AM)_

Tenzin finished his Fallen Feather Form and assumed a respectful standing stance; feet apart at the width of his shoulder, knuckles met one another at his abdomen below his navel, knees slightly bent as he entered a state of meditation.

The morning sunlight was particularly rejuvenating for the councilman.

The sky was blue and cloudless and the air fresh. It was a surprise that a thunderclap echoed through the air from the direction of the City.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Dragon Flats Borough; Friday, 30 August 2013, 08:03 AM)_

Maybe because a super villain who went by the name Thunderclap was running across the alleyway, across the street, and into the park, chased by the Blue Spirit and scaring citizens.

The fearsome villain was wearing skin tight blue body suit with yellow lines across his arms, connecting two canon-like devices on his bracers to the high-tech pack on his back, and he wore a tight mask that covered the top part of his face, with yellow goggles the shape of a horizontal thunderbolt.

Skidding to stop and turning around, Thunderclap aimed his right canon at the pursuer, the yellow lines on his suit lit up, and he shot a bolt of electrical energy at the Blue Spirit. The vigilante managed to cross his dual blade on his chest and defended himself against the brunt of the attack. The bolt still dealt quite a lot of damage and blasted the Blue Spirit to the parked car on the other side of the road.

The second pursuer came out of the alley as the Blue Spirit fell, his robe fluttered as he raced across the street; the hooded figure dashed to the side as Thunderclap shot a bolt at him. The hooded figure rolled sideways and pulled a gun, firing several bolts of red plasma that Thunderclap held against by charging his suit with electricity, creating a layer of defense.

Clicking his tongue in annoyance, the hooded figure stored his gun and stood up; behind him, the Blue Spirit finally got back on his feet. Together, the two dashed forward, with blades ready. The hooded one reached Thunderclap first, swinging his sword towards the villain's neck; Thunderclap caught it and sent a wave of electricity through the blade but the hooded one let go of the sword and dashed away before he could get zapped.

The Blue Spirit came as the hooded one sidestepped, ramming his fist on Thunderclap's face, sending him flying backward. The hooded one claimed his fallen sword and, together with the Blue Spirit, they renewed their assault on the Thunderclap.

Thunderclap fired bolt after bolt of lightning to keep his opponents at bay but the two vigilantes' agilities served them well. The hooded one lunged forward past Thunderclap, breaking his focus, and the Blue Spirit took the advantage of Thunderclap's turned back and severed the protruding tubes on the villain's power pack and disabling him of his power.

Grinning, the hooded one launched himself onto the bewildered villain and awarded him with a flying kick to the face, knocking him down. Groaning, Thunderclap lost consciousness with the last thing he saw before everything went black was the Blue Spirit and the hooded one towering over him, the latter was smirking.

Few minutes later, the two vigilantes were standing on top of the tallest building in the area –the five-storey apartment building nearby- and were watching Detectives Jee and Chit Sang supervising several policemen trying to untie Thunderclap from the tree the hooded one tied him onto.

"I'm surprised you're up and about", the hooded one started casually. "Shouldn't you be at the hospital?"

The Blue Spirit turned to him a little but did not utter a word.

The hooded one sighed. "Well, you're a big boy", he said. "I suppose you know what's best for you."

He raised a fist and, hesitantly, the Blue Spirit bumped it lightly with his own.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Qing Yang – Deep Forest Industry Complex; Friday, 30 August 2013, 08:32 AM)_

Qing Yang District, one of the biggest industrial districts in the Republic, located on the northwestern part of the City, housed several large factories and housing complex. A beat-up pick-up blue truck coursed through the road and stopped at the wired gate in front of a compound belonging to the Deep Forest Industry. A bearded man of slightly tanned skin, buzz cut hair, and green eyes got down from the car with his doggy bag, clad in a simple T shirt and shorts, and waved at the driver of the truck who drove away.

The Boulder exhaled as he took in the sight of the large compound and went ahead, and made his way to the security post. After being cleared, the Boulder was guided into the compound to live his new life.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Friday, 30 August 2013, 11:45 AM)_

Mako was busy taking orders from the patrons of the lunch rush and ran into the shorter girl by accident. "Oh, sorry", he muttered as he picked up his fallen notepad.

"Where's my uncle?" Azula asked without preamble.

"Kitchen", Mako informed, watching the girl walk to the direction of his thumb, all the while wondering how she could stand being in a hoodie in the heat of summer.

In any case, three minutes later, Mako found himself going the same route, laden with the patron's order of BLT sandwich, extra B, extra L, no T, substitute with pickles. The sweet-looking girl of medium height with eyes as brown as her long ponytailed hair smiled brightly as she received her order and smiled brighter as Mako put down the complimentary slice of cheesecake from Iroh who was not above giving free stuff to pretty young girls who visited his establishment. If not for his amiable personality, Iroh would have been flagged as a predator long ago.

The girl took a quick glance on Mako's nametag. "Thanks, Mako", she said sweetly. "Please thank Uncle Iroh for me too."

"Sure thing", Mako managed a weak polite smile before he departed.

The bell above the door rang as it was opened and the teenager with jet black curtained hair, pale skin, and amber eyes walked in, greeting gleefully at the BLT girl. "Bobbie!" Mako heard the boy called as he walked into the kitchen to get another order.

Mako noticed that the patrons on the teashop were usually students from the Academy across the street, with the addition of graduates from the Academy who were hooked on Iroh's jasmine and some old folks who had frequented the teashop since before Mako started working there. They rarely had regulars from the random citizens though it was not uncommon. It would seem that the amber-eyed boy had become one of the latter.

He had been coming almost daily now, sometimes more than once in a day, and mostly he was with Lu Ten. Mako found the boy intriguing. He guessed the boy was not much older than himself. However, Mako could not shake off the feeling that there was something more to the boy than meet the eye. It was like the boy had a presence that was simply impossible to ignore. Whenever Mako walked past the boy's table, he always felt like he was walking past a tiger cage.

Luckily, the packed teashop afforded him little time gawk around. He was soon busy taking orders from three different tables and did not notice an interesting individual entering the teashop until Iroh beamed and practically leaped over the counter to greet the Air Monk.

Iroh and Tenzin conversed in whisper and it ended with Iroh guiding the guest inside, no doubt to his apartment on the second floor. As the chatter returned to the teashop, Mako made his way to Korra and Bolin's table.

"What's Tenzin doing here?" Mako asked the table, eyeing Bolin who was making fangs with fries to amuse the Storm children; only Jinora looked unfazed, like usual.

"I dunno", Korra shrugged, wiping ketchup from Meelo's mouth with a napkin. "This morning, he did look a little on edge."

"Daddy had the thick vein on his forehead", Ikki said, mimicking said forehead by pinching the skin on her forehead and making a sour face.

Mako snickered. "Anyway", he addressed Korra and Bolin. "Toza called. We're on tonight."

"What are you guys doing tonight", Meelo asked, bouncing on his seat.

"Uh… movies", Bolin lied awkwardly. "Yeah… we have movies to watch, you know… PG-13 stuff, so you guys can't come."

"Booo!" the younger of Storm kids booed, their elder sister eyed them dryly.

Out of the blue, the front door slammed open and stood in front of it was a man of vague Water Tribe tanned skin and blue eyes, with thin moustache and soul patch, and dark hair in wavy style, clad in a rather extravagant blue suit with wavy design and he stood there like the king of the world.

"Hey, isn't that—", Korra began.

"Zhu Li!" the strange man boomed. "Is this the teashop of which General Iroh speak of? And when I said 'General Iroh', of course I meant the handsome young one, not the old chubby veteran one although the old chubby veteran is the one we are here to see!"

"Yes, sir", a plain looking lady with hair up in a bun, wearing a pair of glasses and dark blue pantsuit, emerged.

"Well, then", the strange man beamed to the room, completely oblivious of how much of a spectacle he was making of himself. "Show me to him! The old General Iroh, not the young one, of course!"

Much to Korra, Mako, and Bolin's surprise, Azula appeared out of nowhere and approached the strange man. Korra's protective-big-sister side wanted to scream and warn the younger girl about approaching a random strange man.

"You're Varrick from Varrick Global Industries?" Azula deadpanned, unfazed by Varrick's flamboyant appearance and entrance.

"Why, yes, dearie", Varrick said energetically. "What a wonderfully… murderous look you have in your eyes. You must be Azula. Your uncle spoke highly of you."

Azula narrowed her eyes a fraction, looking annoyed by Varrick's comment. "Uncle is waiting upstairs. Follow me", she said curtly. As she turned around and led the guests to the apartment upstairs, she turned to the amber-eyed boy who was watching the whole thing and, to Mako's surprise, motioned him to come along with her hand.

The boy stood up and followed suit, leaving the BLT girl at the table.

"Who was that?" Mako turned to the table.

"Varrick of the Varick Global Industries", Jinora replied smoothly. "He's a business magnate who started as a poor seal hunter from the South Pole and expanded his business from a single canoe to a global shipping enterprise."

"That is interesting", Mako said. "But, actually, I was referring to that boy who has been coming here lately. He just went up with Varrick and Azula."

"Oh", Jinora sipped her soda. "Well, that was—"

"We need help in here!" someone called from the kitchen.

"Coming", Mako called back and hurried inside.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tayo Hill – St. Serra's Hospital; Friday, 30 August 2013, 01:02 PM)_

Ursa frantically strode down the hospital hallway, one hand gripping her chest and did little to quell her pounding heart. She stopped every nurse and staff she came across but received no confirmation as to where her son was. Finally, as they had little patience left despite their sympathy, the staff suggested the lady to stay in Zuko's room, again, and reassured her that they would keep looking and keep her informed.

Crestfallen and pale like a ghost, Ursa returned to the private ward of his son and seated herself on the cushioned wooden chair at the side of Zuko's bed…

…and caught the amber eye of his son staring at her from the other side of the room, bare-chested and upside down in a handstand position against the wall.

"Zuko!" Ursa shouted, startling the boy and sending him crashing down. "Where have you been?!" she demanded quickly as she helped the boy up to his feet and crushing him in a hug.

"I was in the bathroom. It was hot so I took a shower. Then I got bored, so I exercised a little", Zuko grumbled, letting his mother lead him back to the bed.

"Oh, dear…" Ursa sighed, fussing over the bandage that engulfed the left side of her son's face. They had to shave his head before the surgery and it left him scarred under the bandage. "You scared me to death."

"What did Zuzu do this time?" Azula materialized out of nowhere, carrying several bags of her uncle's takeout bags.

"Azula, how did you get here?" Ursa asked while fussing with Zuko's blanket.

"Lu Ten dropped me", the girl said, putting the bags on the nearby table and began unloading the food. "I had to help Uncle with some chores today and Lu Ten was there, so he drove me here instead of Dad."

"Oh, right", Ursa said. "I forgot about Iroh. Oh my, you need more water, Zuko."

The lady got up and took the empty water pitcher out for a refill.

Sighing, Zuko readjusted his sitting position on the bed and noticed his sister slowing down in doing her chore. Though, eventually, she was done unloading boxes of cookies and food on the table and had to face him eventually. Tentatively, Azula turned to her brother, chewing her lower lip –a childhood habit she had not truly outgrown- and approached the bed with even step bearing a box of cinnamon shortbread, Zuko's favorite.

She took a seat at the other side of Zuko's bed and fidgeted a bit, though still retaining that air of snobbishness that she never left home without. Zuko rarely saw her like this.

"Hey", Azula said to the edge of the bed. "How are you doing?"

It was the second time she visited, the first time when Zuko was awake.

"My face is hot and itchy", Zuko complained, taking a piece of cookie from the box Azula put on his lap. "Did I miss anything?"

"No", Azula played with her hair, still not looking at her brother. "For some reason, everyone cancelled their summer plan. We had to cancel our trip to Whale Island because of… you know", she cleared her throat. "Tom-Tom got sick all of a sudden and Mai and Ty Lee had to cancel their trip to Gaoling; Katara and Sokka decided to stay and join Master Piandao's summer training camp. Actually, Suki did get to go home to Kyoshi Island… so, when I said everyone cancelled their summer plan, it wasn't entirely true."

Zuko did not realize his healthy eye was widened and his mouth slightly gaping. "Are you alright?"

Azula's eyes finally darted to her brother's and she looked slightly miffed. "Are _you_ alright?" she fired back. "You're the one who got half of his face barbecued!"

Now, it was Zuko's turn to get miffed. "What's your problem?!"

"What's my problem?! What's yours?!" Azula still managed some degree of composure but she had clearly lost it. "What were you thinking, trying to take that thug on by yourself? Who do you think you are? Some kind of hero?!"

Zuko opened his mouth to retort but Azula was not finished.

"I could've gotten him with my flame!" she spat. "But, you—", she drew a sharp breath and appeared to be on the verge of crying. "You…"

Silence…

"My flame burnt you", Azula said so softly, eyes back to her knees.

Zuko was at lost for words. Azula rarely showed remorse as she was a proud person.

Still, like all good big brother out there, Zuko felt like he had to do something. He placed his hand on his little sister's head and rubbed her head. "It wasn't your fault", he mumbled.

Azula took his box of cinnamon shortbread. "These are mine now", she grumbled. "Baldy…"

Outside the room, with her ear pressed on the door as she listened to the sibling bicker over the cookies, Ursa smiled.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Qing Yang – Deep Forest Industry Complex; Friday, 30 August 2013, 01:30 PM)_

The Boulder, now clad in a green overall bearing the crest of the industry, and a pair of goggles hanging around his neck, got up from the long table he had his lunch at, and moved to the exit of the mess hall. Work was hard to come by for someone like him –modern lit major, no special skills, bad social skills, and a juvie record- and this particular job at this particular Industry actually came to him and, quite literally, hit him in the face.

So far, he had been tasked with doing menial jobs; moving crates and the likes. The boy he met promised him a better life and, the Boulder had to admit, this was already better than robbing armored cars. But, then again, he also promised something worth fighting for and the Boulder doubts he was talking about menial labor in an industry.

"Yo!" a voice called from behind him as he walked down the hallway. The Boulder turned and found a boy, a teenager. His eyes were brown and shaggy hair dark, kept in place by a pair of goggles her wore on his head, and his skin was paler than most Earth Kingdom, but the Boulder guessed a paraplegic in a wheelchair like him would not go out often anyway, not in Earth Kingdom neighborhood.

"Hello…?" the Boulder frowned, lifting his eyes quickly from the wheelchair to meet the boy's eyes.

"You must be 'the Boulder'", the boy made a quotation mark at the mention of his name, much to the Boulder's irk. "I'm Teo", the boy extended his hand. "Come with me."

"Uh… but…" the Boulder pointed weakly at the direction where he was going, back to his work.

"Don't worry", Teo picked up a tablet he had on his lap and tapped it several time. "You are scheduled with me after lunch. Didn't you read your schedule?"

"Uh… no?" the boulder rubbed the back of his neck and followed the boy to the opposite direction.

"Right", the boy chuckled. "Umm… if you don't mind…"

The Boulder blinked several times before he got what the boy was asking him. "Sure, sure", he moved and pushed the wheelchair for the boy, still having no idea where they were supposed to go. Teo did not seem to care to tell him, being busy with his tablet, tapping on charts that the Boulder did not understand.

"Turn left", Teo said as they approached an intersection without looking up from his tablet. "Now, I was told you have a rather unique ability", Teo commented.

"Uh… yes?" the Boulder frowned. He was not afraid of being found as a metahuman. During his briefing, he was told that they have open policy and metahuman workers were actually encouraged to use their abilities if they could. One of his coworkers had super strength and was using it to move crates without machinery.

"Now, as I understand it -turn right here- you gain velocity and it increases your strength and endurance", Teo tapped his tablet and a video recording popped up, showing the Boulder ramming into the car. " Hmm… we would like to put you through a series of test and hopefully we can gain more insight on how your power work. Maybe it's epinephrine?" Teo surmised energetically.

"Epi-what?"

"Well, ya know, adrenaline", Teo grinned. "Only now, some people claimed ownership of that word and we don't use it anymore."

"What?"

"Now, okay. We are here", Teo said as they went through the door at the end of the hallway and found themselves in the open field.

There was an open tent set up at the side of what looked like an airstrip or a straight racetrack. Before he knew it, he was ushered into a smaller tent by some people who were tending to some computer screens and machineries, and the Boulder was instructed to change into a tight fitting rubbery clothes that showed too much of his bulges. He almost refused to get out of his tent.

A short slim young woman cleared her throat uncomfortably and fought against the rosiness of her cheeks as she waved some sort of scanner baton on the Boulder's muscular front and stuck some censor nodes on his vital and joint points.

"Now, this exercise is simple", Teo said. "Clearly, you need velocity to bring out your power. So, you just need to run. We will measure your heart rate and your other vital signs, and of course, your biochemical reactions—"

"OWW!" a small bald man approached the Boulder out of nowhere and injected his arm with a hypospray.

"—with nanobots."

"Nano-what?!"

"But, don't worry. They are harmless and will come out with your feces", Teo concluded; the Boulder had a disgusted look on his face. "We will find out your capabilities, your limits, and your untapped potential. First, we will find out the threshold that triggers your power. Go to the starting line and run on my mark."

The Boulder looked at him, confused.

"Go", Teo shooed him.

Still a little disoriented, the Boulder made his way to the end of the track and waited for the mark. At Teo's instruction, he dashed and, as he reached the middle of the track, running at his top speed, a brick wall jutted out of the smooth track, much to his surprised. He tried to stop but he was running too fast and he rammed through the wall and crashed to the ground.

"What the hell?!" the large man shouted angrily at the team of nerds who were suddenly busy tapping on their computers.

"Come here", Teo called on a bullhorn. "You will want to see this."

Grumbling, the Boulder got up and jogged to them. Teo tapped his tablet and a hologram display popped up, much to the Boulder's amazement and made him forget his irk.

"Now, we received some valuable info about the mechanics behind your abilities, and if you could stop doing that…" the Boulder stopped poking the hologram. "… let me show you what we found."

The hologram, showing the recording of the Boulder's run, with some display of his vitals and a timer at the side, played. "Your vitals increases very quickly", Teo explained, pointing at the moving charts on the Boulder's vitals. "We still couldn't pinpoint what it is in your physical functions that enables your abilities. Your hormones level is normal, a slight increase in epinephrine but that is understandable since you _were_ running", Teo rubbed his chin. " Hmm… fascinating."

Teo tapped his tablet again and the hologram now displayed a chart with several colorful lines.

"This is fascinating", Teo half-mumbled. "We noticed an exponential increase in muscle, bone, and _skin_ density", Teo laughed. "Dude! You literally hardened!"

"Yay", the Boulder said flatly.

"What's that for?" Teo grinned, his eyes shining. "Do you realize how useful this information is? Imagine it. What if running isn't really a prerequisite? If you can find a way to achieve such changes… " Teo lifted his tablet and turned the screen to the Boulder. "…while remaining stationary, could you imagine the implication? You might not have to _run_ to use your power!"

Now that got the Boulder's attention. "Interesting. The Boulder would very much like to be able to use his abilities without having to run first."

Imagine having access to his abilities without running… he could participate in the meta-tournament where he had been rejected entry simply due to the troublesome requirement for his ability to kick in. The ring was too small a room for him to run and gain enough velocity.

"Right", Teo rubbed his hands energetically. "But, for now, let's test how hard you hit. Perhaps with a concrete wall?"

A concrete wall slid up from the ground right in the middle of the racetrack.

This was going to be a long day for the Boulder.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Fire Nation, Capital City – Fire Nation Royal Palace; Friday, 30 August 2013, 02:00 PM)_

Fire Lord Azulon walked down the deserted hallway of his palace with his Fire Lady beside him. Illah sighed deeply every now and then and looked crestfallen despite her best attempt to appear as if nothing was wrong.

Azulon did not need to ask if anything was wrong.

"Perhaps, we should send for Iroh", Azulon cleared his throat.

Illah huffed. "That ungrateful son!" she snarled.

Even after he left and severed his ties with the Royal Family nearly twenty years ago, Iroh still made it a habit to send flowers and cards on his mother's birthday. Iroh was Illah's favorite son, after all. At Illah's ninety-fifth birthday a couple of years ago, Iroh even made a trip back to the Capital but Azulon sent Royal Procession to chase him away and escorted him back to the airport.

Illah never said anything but Azulon knew she ached for her firstborn.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Qing Yang – Deep Forest Industry Complex; Friday, 30 August 2013, 06:39 PM)_

Clad in only a white towel around his waist, the tired looking Boulder sat on a bench between the lockers and rubbed his sore shoulder. In the middle of the fifth run, Teo had decided to pop out a solid six inches metal wall and the Boulder had dislocated his shoulder. It took nearly three minutes for his system to calm down and his powers to subside. With his power, his whole muscle, joints, tendons, and bones were too tough and solid for the medical team to treat him and pop his shoulder back on.

At least they know that his power was more than just skin deep, Teo had remarked optimistically.

Sighing, the Boulder got up and opened his locker. His eyes fell on his wristwatch.

They mysterious boy had told the Boulder that he was now a hero. A super hero.

The thought gave the Boulder a chill, a good kind.

With a weak tired smile, he picked up the watch and put it on.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Milldew Hill – Sokka's Apartment; Saturday, 31 August 2013, 08:00 AM)_

Sprawling on his belly in a strange octopus-like position, Sokka snored like a Cro-Magnon and slowly woke up to his blaring alarm clock. Grumbling, he hit the small table clock and rolled to his side, deeper into his couch. He was clad in nothing but a white beat-up A shirt and blue striped boxer, further complimenting his homey look.

Naturally, Katara, who had infiltrated his apartment at around 7, cleaned the place a bit because the pigsty state was bothering her, and reset the alarm to an earlier 08:00 AM, felt the compelling urge to immortalize this view by snapping a shot on her phone.

She was about to send the picture to Suki, fighting the temptation to send it to Azula as well, when a text message from her father came.

'_wont be home tonight. get sokka to drive you home. love, dad'_

Fighting the urge to smash her phone, she put the device back on her pocket and resumed her chore of picking up the trash that was littering the apartment. She waited and kept her rising temper in check until she picked up the last candy wrapper in the living room and put it in the trash bag. Calmly, she paced towards the still sleeping Sokka, cracking her knuckles, and woke her brother up by shoving a handful of snow she made with her power into Sokka's shirt.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Goldenbell – Moonbay Park; Saturday, 31 August 2013, 08:44 AM)_

Azula sat on her usual bench, reading a book about theoretical stealth technology. Avi came running to her with a random branch he picked up. The girl lazily patted his head and the dog rushed out again, in search for more trophies to bring to his master.

"My dad was furious", Azula said without looking up from her book. She had gotten accustomed to the boy's silent arrival although he never made it easy.

"Have you been saying that every five minutes or so?" he grinned.

Azula glanced at him sharply.

"What have I done to earn the irk of your esteemed father?"

"I never said he was mad at you", Azula said, flipping another page. "What happened to Zuko rattled him more than he let out. He actually assigned a couple of bodyguards to shadow me. You shouldn't be near me."

The boy simply chuckled.

"That being said", Azula closed her book noisily. "I need a ride to the hospital."

The boy raised a brow. "Uh-huh… what about your bodyguards and your ogre of a dad?"

Smirking, Azula grabbed his hand and dragged him away with Avi following them, wagging his tail happily.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tayo Hill – St. Serra's Hospital; Saturday, 31 August 2013, 11:12 AM)_

Zuko walked out of the bathroom, rubbing his chest and grimacing. His heavily bandaged head felt stuffy and he found himself washing the uncovered part of his face and his neck often nowadays and never bothered to wipe the water.

In his hospital room, Mai was busy fumbling with the drapes, trying her very best to block out any sunlight with Ty Lee watching her while playing with Avi. Azula had wandered off somewhere, probably to bother sick people, and Zuko was wholeheartedly hoping Sokka and the others found her, as they said they would, and brought her with them to get food. A few minutes ago, Iroh called Zuko and informed him that Lu Ten, who was supposed to be arriving with food for him and his friends on their Saturday movie marathon, had to attend to some emergency; something about unstable chemicals in his lab.

Of course, before he left, Sokka had revealed that it was a prank he arranged with the campus security. Lu Ten would be walking in on a rather sophisticated trap device Sokka had installed in his lab that could do something he did not had the chance to explain due to Katara smacking him in the arm.

Lying back on his bed, Zuko sighed deeply and ignored the itch on the left side of his face. Avi jumped up the bed and tried to lick his face, despite his struggle, making Ty Lee giggle.

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

_(Republic City, Tayo Hill – Highland Street; Saturday, 31 August 2013, 11:12 AM)_

In the meantime, Sokka took the chance to check his buzzing cellphone as his beat-up navy blue compact car, one he inherited from Bato at a very affordable price. He was just talking to the kids at the backseat, Toph and Aang, whom he surprisingly liked, mostly because they got on Katara's nerves more often than he had been the entire week in just a mere few minutes of their ride. But, the mere glance at _Private Number_ on his phone screen banished his smile.

"Hmm, wha—?" he asked as he heard his name uttered by Toph.

"I said, what style are you learning at Master Piandao's?" Toph repeated the question impatiently.

"Oh, that", Sokka slowly eased on the gas pedal as the traffic light turned green. "I'm learning swordsmanship from him."

"Oh, Sokka, don't be modest. It doesn't fit you", Katara shivered. "He's a black belt in judo and krav kaga, but he learnt that from our dad. Also, he's considered a graduate from Master Piandao's, although _how_ he actually managed _that_ is debatable."

"Hey, Mater Piandao recognizes my talents. I have talents!" Sokka huffed.

The other three on the car were stunned for a second before they broke into a fit of laughter.

**-A-I-R-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Saturday, 31 August 2013, 11:12 AM)_

Gyatso laughed with fondness as he leafed through the photo album, lounging carefreely in the air conditioned small and humble living room of Iroh's apartment on the second floor of the teashop. His gray eyes twinkled with a certain youthful light as he reminisced on the photographs, especially on the one that had always been his favorite: the photograph of the Masters Lotus and their apprentices. Iroh and himself stood among the numerous members of the Order with their esteemed mentor and Grand Lotus of the Order at the time, Master Shian Li.

"I can never reconcile with how you looked then, old friend", he snickered teasingly at Pakku, who was taking a long drag of his cigarette and knew where this was going. The old Water Tribesman rubbed the bald top of his head.

"Have anyone heard of Master Takkuro?" Piandao asked interestedly, taking a sip of his hot tea.

Yangchen, the only female member on the group, and the only decently dressed one –the other males had shed off their extra layer due to the summer heat- smiled at Piandao. "Your mentor has always been free-spirited. He can never settle down anywhere for more than a month. Last I heard of him was from a travelling Air Nomad from the south. He said he ran into a rugged looking middle-aged man in a village in the southern Earth Kingdom. The man was teaching village children martial art for free."

"Sounds like him", Piandao arched a brow.

"And what about Master Zan? I always like it when he comes to town", Iroh sank back to his couch. At Pakku's raised brow, he added. "He always brings gifts."

"Minister Zan was unable to secure a time off", replied Jian Wu, a big tall man whose physique seemed to be carved by the gods despite his slightly graying dark hair and being only a few years younger than Iroh, the third eldest in the room after Gyatso and Pakku. "He was rather regretful that he could not come. After all, his nephew had decided to move here."

"What will that kid do?" Yangchen voiced a rather discontent tone. "I can never trust him."

"I can assure you, he means no harm", Iroh smiled kindly. "He… is in a _unique_ position, I grant you. However, he has a kind heart and he will go where he believes he is needed."

"It's bad enough we let Ozai send the girls into danger", Yangchen grumbled. "And then there's the Blue Spirit. They are children!"

"They are _not_", Iroh laughed. "I, myself, believe that those four are quite wise beyond their years."

Yangchen and all other in the room, minus Gyatso, gave him a dry look.

"Alright, I understand your concern", they did not faze Iroh. "But we all have to agree with the result. There have not been any complications so far."

"And with new power coming to our side, our job will be much easier", Piandao added on Iroh's favor.

"_Exactly_", Iroh smirked. "And more are coming, I can tell you that."

"How can you be sure?" Yangchen persisted. At Iroh's knowing smirk, she felt chill running down her spine. "No…" she gasped. "I told you I can't trust _that_ boy!"

"Then, trust _me_", Iroh calmly picked up his teacup and sipped it; despite being clad in a thin white T shirt and a pair of silly blue shorts with yellow ducks on it (Azula gave him those for Christmas), he shone with the air of authority afforded to him by his title as the current Grand Lotus. "After all, things are already in motion. By the end of it, _more_ will join our cause. We need someone to keep an eye on them and the Blue Spirit is the only one we can rely on for that."

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden – St. Sanna Street; Saturday, 31 August 2013, 12:22 PM)_

The large Doberman clad in a dog suit that, suitably, looked like a Kevlar armor raced through the alleyway, sniffing the ground fervently. Following behind calmly was a tall young woman with athletic physique and a fierce intimidating look that accompany her long black hair and dark makeup. Her skin was flawless and pale, and her sleeveless shirt underneath her Kevlar armor allowed a view on a red tattoo of coiling snake on both her arms. She carried no firearms, at least not visibly, armed only with a dark leather whip wrapped around her slim waist.

An explosion of sound aired from the dumpster to her left and the three youths barged out from the shadow, making a run for it.

The Doberman, Nyla, growled and leaped towards the nearest and the most unlucky one, locking her jaw on the screaming boy's arm and dragging him down. The boy struggled mightily, despite drawing blood on the bite area, and the young woman in dark slugged him in the gut and swung her elbow, which was wearing the kind of elbow pads that came with military uniform, on his jaw incapacitating him.

"Nyla, watch him", the woman commanded the growling dog that barked once. She then ran after the two.

Rose Garden was a most important social hub in the Republic, known to be the district where many newcomer immigrants to the City lived. Unlike most part of the Republic where conformity to the 'unique' style and culture of the Republic is adhered, Rose Garden was and has always been the place where people would proudly celebrate their heritage. The architecture, for example, was varied and may look haphazard, but to the open-minded, there is a certain charm to a Fire Nation pagoda-like structure framed by Earth Kingdom square-ish shaped house with slanted roofs.

Also, Rose Garden was the place to go for delicacies and artwork of the Four Nations, both locally made and imported, which added a potent commercial charm to multicultural district. In summer such as this, the demand for items such as Air Nomad cold fruit pies, Fire Nation fruit juice, and comfy sundress of Earth Kingdom origin was high and Rose Garden, being situated on a beachside, was always packed.

Two delinquents running through the street, armed with a bat and a crowbar, was not a welcomed sight. Citizens who were still traumatized by the recent riot chose not to get involved as some screamed and got out of the way or got shoved. June, the bounty hunter lady, dashed after those two and, as they ran across a park, an open space, June cracked a devious smile.

She reached to her whip handle on her waist and tugged it, uncoiling her weapon. With high proficiency, she whipped the weapon at the nearest runaway and caught him by the neck. June pulled hard and the boy was slammed to the ground hard on his back.

The second delinquent, after witnessing his compatriot felled in two seconds flat, decided to go on the offensive despite realizing full well of how scary June and her whip could be.

"RCPD! Hands in the air!"

"Oh, thank God…" the delinquent actually said out loud, dropping his crowbar to the ground and himself to his knee.

"Dammit, June!" Jee spat, approaching with his weapon aimed at the criminal. "You almost ruined our stakeout!" he admonished the bounty hunter as he cuffed the boy.

"Well then don't post bounty on them", June coolly rolled her whip.

"It's not up to us now, is it?" Jee seethed, grabbing the handcuffed boy up by the arm.

"Oh, chill, Jee", Chit Sang grinned like a fool at June as he said that. "You look good, girl."

"Thanks", June smirked, winking. Her keen mind was, however, working on several conjectures: bounty on stakeout targets… not the kind of blunder Chief Bei Fong would do. "There is one more in the alley. Nyla's watching him."

Jee's jaw hardened. "I don't like bounty hunters", he mumbled, but not soft enough.

Before June could retort, the roar of machine reached their ears. The Freedom Fighters, riding their bikes, made an appearance.

Jee and Chit Sang promptly pulled out their gun and June snapped her whip.

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden – St. Sanna Street; Saturday, 31 August 2013, 12:25 PM)_

"I said no!" Katara repeated sternly.

"Buuuuuuut…" Sokka pouted to no avail.

"No", Katara said again, balancing the mini cooler on her lap carefully. Iroh had always gone overboard when the kids and food were concerned, and he had insisted they carried with them what seemed to be half the content of his teashop; lunch boxes of rice, meat, and veggies, various bags of chips, which included Katara's favorite plantain chips, a giant bag of popcorn bigger than Toph, and several big thermos filled with Iroh's various specialty tea, hot and cold. "We have enough food! We will _not_ make a stop for burgers!"

"Or maybe some soda?" Sokka hoped; Iroh would rather gut himself and hang from the rafter with his intestine than feed the kids any soda. "I mean, come on… if not for me, then, do it for Aang", Sokka turned to the younger boy hopefully. "Look, he must be hot under all those layers."

"What layers?" Toph asked.

Aang, clad in an orange hoodie and a cap, a pair of jeans and sneakers to hide his tattoos, gulped nervously.

"Yeah, how come you are wearing so many layers in this weather?" Katara turned to the boy and frowned. Sokka stopped as they reached the traffic light.

"Uh…" Aang laughed nervously, tugging on his collar a bit. "W-well, I'm just not feeling hot."

Katara frowned. "Not that you mention it, you are not even sweating."

A body fell on the hood of Sokka's car with a loud crash, cracking the windshield and making the four of them scream. The impact made the engine died down and Sokka's attempt to restart the car failed.

"Everyone get out!" the oldest among the four shouted.

They abandoned the car and, with Sokka holding on to his little sister's wrist, and Aang grabbing Toph's hand, they made a run through the sudden chaos into the first refuge they saw; the open door of a small convenient store.

They got in and closed the door behind them, ignoring the owner of the store who was hiding and whimpering behind the counter.

"What the hell is going on?!" Sokka heaved, peeking at the chaos outside where a massive brawl ensued between what appeared to be a punk gang and the cops.

"Are they the Freedom Figthers?" Aang asked in a hushed voice.

"Let's not stay here and find out", Sokka took the charge and moved deeper into the store. "Let's see if they have a backdoor."

"There is", Toph said. "Through that door, into the room. The door on the left."

"How do you know that?" Katara frowned at her.

"Never mind that now!" Sokka urged them on and they jogged out of the store into the back alley.

Heaving from the excitement, they paused for a bit.

Unfortunately for them, they were found by a couple of delinquents. The four made a run for it out of the alley and soon they found themselves being chased by a group of about ten thugs. They ran into a parking lot. A couple more thugs appeared in front of them, riding a bike that roared loud.

Grinning, the thug riding at the back of the bike leaped down, brandishing a small Uzi.

At the sight of the gun, Aang's gray eyes widened and teared up.

He could still hear the sound of death it brought his brethren.

In the next split second, the thug, who was standing quite far away, was knocked to the ground by Aang who, for a second there, was a blur of orange and blue that had rammed into the thug.

"Meta!" someone from the crowd shouted before they all turned aggressive.

The biker sped ahead towards Aang with the intention to run the boy over. The ground beneath the wheels, however, turned slippery with frost as a blast of thick white frost mist hit the ground. The biker slipped and sailed past Aang, unable to get up from the impact, and Aang saw Katara with her hands pointing at the ground.

Their eyes met and a loud bang snapped them of their daze. Sokka was cringing on the spot. He opened his eyes fearfully and saw a couple of small caliber bullets hovering in front of his face, suspended in the air. Toph had _her_ palm pointed at them.

"I guess I'm not the only one with a secret", Toph noted sourly, unseeing eyes aimed accusingly at Aang.

Aang chuckled nervously. "Guess not" he said before he sped up and moved faster than the eyes can see; so fast that the world slowed down around him. He ran towards the thugs that were about to ambush his friends from behind, leaping over Toph, and, utilizing his martial skills, spun and thrust both his palms, landed non-lethal hit on their gut. His speed added to the power of his blow and he saw the thugs flew backward in slow motion before he tapped out of his power and they launched themselves backward to the row of cars parked there.

One of the said cars creaked ominously and lifted itself from the ground. Toph was utilizing her power and, with quite a struggle, she telekinetically lifted the car and slammed it at the group of thugs that dispersed before they got hit. Some of those people fell to the ground unceremoniously when their feet were encased in ice to the ground by Katara.

Sokka cried out girlishly and evaded the swing of a bat by a thug. Aang sped ahead and snatched the bat away from the thug, saving him; the thug had his weapon taken midswing and was wondering where his bat had gone to when Sokka kicked him in the private part.

The four exchange bewildered glances at each other and each saw and felt their confidence growing. In a matter of minutes, they managed to incapacitate the rest of the thugs. Katara and her ice power were helpful, especially the ice blast she sent that was concussive enough to send a big man flying. The thugs metal piercing and studded ornaments proved detrimental to them and Toph's manipulation of magnetisms, and Aang's superspeed was also extremely helpful.

Sokka did not do much but he did his best.

Freezing the last of the thugs neck down to a random car, Katara exhaled a breath of relief despite her heart still beating hard. Turning to his friends, she grinned weakly.

It was Toph who said what was in everybody's mind. "_Man_, we are awesome!"

They laughed.

A slow but loud applause shocked the four and they turned into the more shocking appearance of Iroh.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden – St. Sanna Sports Center; Saturday, 31 August 2013, 12:42 PM)_

"Master Piandao?" Korra gaped at the sudden appearance of their master. "What are you doing here?"

Smiling, Piandao stepped closer to Korra, Bolin, and Mako, ignoring the grunting or otherwise unconscious thugs that littered around the basketball court.

"Excellent work, I must admit", Piandao commented. It was summer and it was hot, and the Master was clad in a bright colorful Hawaiian shirt, Bermuda shorts, a straw hat and shades, and a pair of slippers. When one of the bandits he was passing though tried to get up, naturally Piandao kicked off his slipper before he kicked the man in the head to knock him out, and he slip his foot into the slipper before he resumed his walk. "Come", he said. "Fat is waiting outside with my car."

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden – St. Sanna Street; Friday, 31 August 2013, 12:45 PM)_

Above a tall apartment building, the Fire Nation boy watched the commotion below. With him was his three companions who, like him, were in their civilian getup; the big man in a dark blue A shirt and trainers, the thin ponytailed man in a thin white shirt and shorts, sporting a pair of sunglasses, and the woman in a dark tank top and a pair of jean shorts, and sunglasses like her brother.

"I like Rose Garden", the boy sighed. He himself was wearing a black sleeveless T shirt and cargo shorts, and he had his hands in his pockets and his hair tied up haphazardly.

"Piandao's on the move", the ponytailed thin man said, eyes following the top of a dark sedan that wisely chose a less chaotic route.

"Iroh?" the boy asked.

The ponytailed man scanned around a bit and, adjusting his sunglasses, he found the peculiar sight of Iroh, Sokka, Aang, and Katara evacuating the food and drinks from Sokka's busted car into Iroh's van with Toph inside the van receiving the items.

"Yeeeeaahhh…. About them…" the ponytailed man was not sure what to say.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tayo Hill – St. Serra's Hospital, Psychiatric Wing; Saturday, 31 August 2013, 12:59 PM)_

Hidden low behind a bench on the backyard, under an almost deserted grassy yard, Azula ducked low and waited patiently. Two straight lanes ran through the rectangular shaped yard from top to bottom, and side to side, dividing the yard into nine spaces, with benches on the middle line, and a tall lamppost right in the middle, bearing a giant clock on top of it. Azula's eyes kept watch on the big hand as it ticked to twelve and saw the door to the wing opened up by an orderly.

After making sure nobody noticed her, she leaped over the bench with her hoodie on and strode with purpose straight into the normally restricted part of the hospital. St. Serra was the most prestigious medical institution in the Earth Continent and it was the forerunner of specialized psychiatric treatment for meta-humans.

Many meta-humans were burdened by their powers, or were simply victims to the grandiose nature of their powers, believing they were special and privilege, and ended up developing a psychosis. On over 75% cases, they responded poorly to treatments and therapists that would work on people without powers and, more often than not, they were sent to a special asylum like the notorious Wu Hei Psychiatric Center which, in reality, was just a prison with padded cells.

Still, meta-humans and psychosis is never a good combo, which is why the Psychiatric Wing in St. Serra's is especially restricted. Rumor has it that the orderlies there were trained in martial art that specialized in subduing moves, like judo and aikido, and they carried some restraining devices, like handcuffs, taser, even syringe loaded with sedatives under their shirt.

Azula, however, despite being fourteen, was highly trained in stealth and she herself was a meta-human and had more experience in combat more than most teenagers her age. She had a curious nature that made her fearless. Azula expertly maneuvered through the door when the orderly was not looking and soon found herself inside the dining hall of the wing.

It was summer and the school was out, and it was common for the hospital to allow visitors from the relatives to enter the wing, although they did have to take extra precautions. Currently, the hall was quite packed with patients and Azula noticed some visitors as well. Trying not to stand out, she made her way to the corner of the room where the old man was sitting, waiting patiently and a bit jittery.

Slipping into the seat in front of the man, Azula glanced around before she unzipped her hoodie a little and pulled out a pack wrapped in brown paper bag and handed it to the man under the table. The man took it quick and shoved it under his patient gown.

"Ah…." the old man sighed in relief as if he had just passed a wind, which he might or might not have. "Are you sure it's from that little deli across the street?" he asked, raising a brow above his mismatched green eyes; his right eye was visible bigger than his loopy left one.

"The one beside the bookstore, yup", Azula took off her hood and relaxed a bit.

"The one run by that chubby old lady with a mole on her face?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure you didn't enter the bookstore by accident? It was also run by a chubby old lady with a mole on her face?"

"Nope."

"Are you sure?"

"Yup."

"How can you be sure?"

"I saw no books."

"And you ask for the 'special concoction one'?"

"Yup."

"You are sure this is the 'special concoction one' and not a 'regular concoction one'?"

"I'm sure."

"How could you be sure?"

"I asked", Azula shrugged and moved a tile on the Pai Sho board on the round table between them. Someone was playing with the old man before she got here, or the old man was playing with himself for all she knew, but she admired how advanced the stage of the game was and how evenly matched the two sides were. She took an offensive stance. "I don't know the old woman and she looks grumpy and smells like moth ball dipped in garlic sauce, but I haven't done anything that earned any reason for her to be dishonest with me.

"Hmm…" the old man big eye stared intently at the delicate looking girl in front of him. He titled his head to accentuate the action. Without looking at the board, he put a long bony finger on a tile and push it forwards, turning the table on Azula and forced her on the defensive. "You are one peculiar little girl."

Azula narrowed her eyes at the old man whose haggard appearance fit the word better; white bushy Einstein-esque hair, thick bushy goatee that looked like the end of a duster, and he hunched and gave deranged a whole new meaning. "How so?"

"Well, first of all, who wears hoodie in summer?" the old man moved another tile to counter Azula's advance. "Second of all, you just ran an errand that may or may not have involved illegally concocted rock candy for an old man you just met."

"I don't like cold", Azula said; underneath her hoodie, she was wearing a black tank top and shorts, and a pair of bright yellow flip-flops, and the room was air conditioned. "Also, if life is a video game, you want to run errand for an old man you just met that may or may not have involved illegally concocted rock candy. You are bound to get rewarded with valuable treasures."

"That's a good point", the old man nodded slowly. "You are surprisingly good at Pai Sho."

"My Uncle taught me and my brother how to play", Azula said lazily, trapping a portion of the old man's tile in a rather sophisticated trap gambit. "I beat him easily because my brother never had any patience for any games that challenge the intellectual prowess. That being said, he beats me in race, arm wrestling, and martial art. I know it makes him sound like a brute, but he really isn't. He's a bit of a wuss; he cries when he watches sad movies and he secretly likes _Twilight_."

The old man gave her a blank look.

"I envy you your advanced age", Azula admitted sincerely. "People of your age are allowed to _not_ know about _Twilight_ and hold your heads up high among people who would make simply make fun of you if you don't know Twilight or if you know it and actually like it. People who are out there are crazier than most of you here. No offense."

"None taken", the old man said. "And I envy you your youth, combined with that outlook of life you have cultivated. I was decades older than you when I realized that I'm the sanest person on this green mother earth and the rest of the world are the crazy ones!"

"Including me?" Azula asked quietly.

"Well… maybe you are an exception, young lady", the old man smirked. "Would you look at that… it took the universe this long to finally deliver me what I have been looking for nearly all my life: another sane person!"

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tayo Hill – St. Serra's Hospital; Saturday, 31 August 2013, 01:43 PM)_

Iroh knew there would be questions, more questions than he would want to deal with at the moment. He had said that he would answer each and every question they had but the silence in the drive to the hospital was agonizing, especially when all eyes were fixed on him the whole time.

"Alright", he pulled over at the parking lot in front of the front door. "Come on, children."

"Okay, so, first of all…" Sokka started calmly but ended up delivering his questions with a very Sokka-ish. "What?! Who?! How?! Arrgggghh!"

Iroh sighed deeply. "Now is not the time", he said, helping the kids with their load. "We will talk about this later at a more appropriate time. You have just been in a very trying ordeal. Now, go and meet your friends. Enjoy each other's company and these fine nourishment."

"But—", Katara started.

Iroh interrupted her and lead the kids into the hospital. "I promise you, we will talk. We have much to talk about. And don't worry about your car", he said to Sokka. "I will have it fixed and sent to your apartment within two days. You do need someone to drive you home though. Now, can someone tell me why that niece of mine is bullying that young doctor over there?"

Azula was standing with her arms crossed and she looked all sort of unhappy, talking to a young male doctor who was on the verge of tears. She spoke a few words and simply walked away, leaving the doctor who looked both relieved and exasperated.

"Can you believe that guy?" Azula huffed as she approached her uncle and friends. "He said I can't visit my distant granduncle who is my cousin's brother-in-law's third aunt's second cousin's fifth uncle thrice removed!"

"Since when does Lu Ten have a married sister?" Iroh asked incredulously, dropping all sorts of hint for Azula to help him with the load. "And who do you want to visit? Are bothering sick people?"

"I am _not_!" Azula scowled. "It was a random old man in the psychiatric ward. He has a funny snorty laugh and he doesn't seem to know the difference between rock sugar and cotton candy. I think his teeth are stronger than mine."

Iroh narrowed his eyes at his niece's response and dropped the giant bag of popcorn in her arms.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden – Toza's Pro-Meta Gym, Mako and Bolin's apartment; Saturday, 31 August 2013, 01:55 PM)_

"So, that really just happened", Bolin said, sitting on the floor between Korra and Mako, with the back on the beat up couch that was the centerpiece of their more or less bare apartment.

"Yup", Korra said, gulping from her water bottle. "Master Piandao just dropped us here, saying we would talk later."

"Do you two also feel like we are being treated like children?" Mako asked dryly.

"Well, technically, we _are_ children", Bolin pointed out. "Even you, bro. You turned sixteen in December, so technically you are still a minor. I'm not helping, am I?"

"Nope", Mako seethed slightly. Pabu cringed on Bolin's lap.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Tayo Hill – St. Serra's Hospital, Psychiatric Wing; Saturday, 31 August 2013, 09:59 PM)_

Bumi, a hunched old man with mismatched green eyes, sat at his desk. His room was small and painted white, but he was allowed electronics such as the computer on his desk, almost entirely covered by stickers that he had got as prizes from numerous candies and snacks he had bought or received from his fellow Lotus who visited him there over the years; mostly just Pakku and Piandao though. Despite his status as a Master Lotus, he rarely kept in touch with his colleagues and he doubted even the Grand Lotus knew he was there.

On the screen of his computer was an online game he played from time to time when he was bored of the sheer craziness the world around him showed. It was a game based of ancient martial art theme, Age of Wushu, and he had just received a PM from his newest friend, a female Tangmen character named _BlueGirl_.

_BlueGirl: 'gtg. early morning tomorrow. don't forget ur meds. nite old man' _

_RockCandy: 'nite, lil girl. thanks for the popcorn.'_

With that, Bumi logged off his shaolin monk character and stretched slightly in his chair. Truly, the little Fire Nation girl he met earlier that day was fascinating. He sensed a great purpose in her life, but then again, Bumi was old and when someone gets to his age, they will begin to see purpose in any youth's life.

Plopping down on his bed, the old man grabbed a handful of popcorn from an open bag the size of Santa's sack beside his bed, one that had most definitely been smuggled to him by Azula earlier that day from Iroh's excessive food batch, and snacked on them as he fell asleep.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden – Shinrin Diner; Saturday, 31 August 2013, 11:12 PM)_

Baba stifled a yawn as she swept the floor of her diner, closed and almost empty now, save for her and a couple of girls helping her with cleaning, and Akko, the Water Tribe regular of hers and her fish supplier who was there for a late night snack and the Diner's half-priced bread at night, but somehow got roped into washing dishes for Baba.

Looking up to the street outside, Baba saw a dark sedan with tinted glass cruising through the nearly abandoned street.

Ozai steered the aforementioned sedan with tinted glass through the streets; Phoenix, Acro, and Stealth on the backseat, not uttering a word, not even among themselves. Acro fidgeted uncomfortably, not used to silence so thick and long. Stealth looked bored as usual despite a tinge of curiosity she could not hide. Phoenix never peeled her eyes of the rearview mirror where her father caught her staring from time to time but showed no response other than returning his eyes back on the road.

Ozai gathered them in quite a hurry, with a slight rush and heavy bags under his eyes, and he ordered Azula to gather the other two girls to the basement, and he drove them from there with this unmarked car. Phoenix, Acro, and Stealth had bikes built by Ozai himself that they used for transport during their missions, and never before Ozai drove them like this. Then again, Ozai never said what the mission was.

Since what happened to Zuko, Ozai had retreated to his basement and the rest of the family saw so little of him, even Azula. He _never_ visited his son in the hospital, but Azula knew it was far from lack of affection. Although it was painfully obvious that Ozai treated his two children differently, it could not be said that he did not care for his son. Ozai was always overboard with Azula, showering her with gifts, open affection, praises and all; with Zuko, he had always been more subtle.

When Zuko came home with the news that he had found a part-time job at the animal shelter, Ozai hacked into the shelter's database and did a background check on each and every one who worked there. Also, a few days after Zuko's attack, Ozai was gone and did not come home, making Ursa worried until Iroh called her and informed her that Ozai had been staying in his teashop to use his kitchen to brew a rather difficult family recipe of herbal tea.

And Azula knew Ozai had been cooped up in his basement because he was monitoring police radio and running the surveillance footage on any criminal database he could hack to identify the Freedom Fighters for almost 24/7. So, Azula guessed tonight's excursion had something to do with that and Ozai wanted a piece of the action himself. Her father was a tall muscular man with strong built and great prowess in martial art; he had been Azula and Zuko's first teacher before he decided, on Iroh's urge, to send them to Piandao. And then, there was one time when Zuko and Azula were little and Ozai brought them to a carnival, and Zuko found out that a game was rigged and he demanded his money back, which resulted in the owner, a thuggish looking man shoving the eleven year old Zuko to the ground, Ozai sent the man to hospital with one single punch and bought the children's silence with ice cream afterwards. To this day, Ursa never found out about it.

They made a turn in a bend ahead and entered a street that promptly lost the main illumination from the streetlight that went off simultaneously. The girls tensed up. Stealth put her full-face plain dark mask on and, sitting on the left, she went for the door as soon as the car stopped but it was still locked. Moments later, there was soft knock on the glass of the front door and Ozai unlocked the door, allowing entry to a woman in dark hooded garb and a mask that covered the lower half of her face.

Phoenix, Acro, and Stealth recognized her immediately as one of the four dark hoods. The woman inclined her head politely at Ozai, who did not reciprocate and began driving away. The streetlights went back to normal as they passed them

The ride was now doubly awkward with three pair of eyes watching the hooded masked woman intently. Phoenix studied her uniform that somehow looked familiar to her, as if she had seen it long before, maybe in her childhood; that sense of familiarity also brought color red and gold, and an old old man whose appearance was vague in Phoenix's mind.

Phoenix took her time to study the dark metal plates on the woman's shoulder pads and bracers, the intricate pattern hiding in the dark color of her armor, and one her pair of dagger strapped to her waist. A guardless twenty or thirty centimeters dagger, with no adornment whatsoever, and handle made of what appear to be ivory but colored dark like the rest of her uniform.

Phoenix played a scenario in her head where she wrenched that dagger out and held it on the woman's neck.

Suddenly, the car stopped and Phoenix looked out the windshield and noticed that they were in an open field above a hill, surrounded by open space. She did not even realize her father brought them here. A pair of headlights came into life in front of them, originating from a dark sedan.

The rest of the dark hoods were standing in front of them.


	7. Chapter 6 - Debut

**Chapter 6 – Debut**

Disclaimer: I own nothing

* * *

><p><em>(Republic City, Goldenbell – the Kais' Residence; Monday, 9 September 2013, 11:15 AM)<em>

The white van pulled into the Kai's driveway and out came the Kais minus Ozai, plus Mai and Ty Lee. Ursa, being Ursa, fussed a bit over Zuko, who had just been released from the hospital, all the while trying to make Zuko understand that his father was busy at work and could not come with them. The rest of the Kais did not know why she even bothered; Zuko was not bothered by Ozai's absence.

As soon as they entered the house, the girls made their way to Azula's room, Iroh made himself at home in the kitchen, and Lu Ten, raised to be a gentleman, helped Ursa with Zuko's stuff. Zuko himself settled on the familiar couch in the living room and reached for the TV remote instinctively.

In Azula's room, behind the locked door, Mai were tapping away on Azula's computer, accessing a secure channel the 'hoods' had set up for their use. Ty Lee peeked enthusiastically behind her and Azula sat on her bed, leaning on her headboard with her arms crossed and legs outstretched, looking grumpy.

Grumpier than usual.

Ozai had set up an alliance with the 'hoods' without asking Azula, the naturally appointed leader of the trio, and it was a highly unusual move by Ozai; both the alliance and the not asking her opinion first part.

A screen popped up and the smirking leader of the 'hoods' said his ever so quaint, _"Hello."_

**-A-I-R-**

**Heroes of Republic City**

**-A-I-R-**

_(Republic City, North Plain – the Storms' Residence; Monday, 9 September 2013, 11:15 AM)_

Aang grunted as he fell unceremoniously to the dry dirt ground, much to Toph's delight. Appa, the big white gray mastiff, barked, as if calling a break or declaring Aang's defeat. Groaning, the boy got up and dusted his scrapped knees. No longer did he hide his tattoos, after the fight at the parking lot where Sokka caught a glimpse of blue under his beanie and snatched his hat. To Aang's surprise, they did not make a fuss over his tattoos and his empathic ability did not sense the fake politeness people always displayed when they knew of his tattoo. Of course, Sokka and Katara, having been raised in the collectivist culture of the Water Tribe, were open to such idiosyncrasy, and Toph was blind so the tattoos did not have any effect on her.

Laughing, Toph rolled her shoulder and yelled out the one word Aang had come to fear. "Again!"

Toph was determined to make him pay for lying to him about having one ability.

"I never said I only have one ability", Toph shrugged dismissively whenever Aang accused her of the same sin.

It was highly unusual, impossible even, for metahuman to display more than one ability. Their abilities are marked by the mutation in their gene and having two abilities is like having two different sets of fingerprint.

And yet, there they were, two teenagers with two abilities; Aang and his empathic sense and superspeed, and Toph with her seismic sense and metal manipulation, the latter she was using to great effect on Aang.

"Okay, ready?" she asked, levitating and spinning a length of iron chain they found in the junkyard that Aang had wrapped with a piece of rag to dull the bite.

Tapping into his ability, the world around him slowed down; all sense perception slowed around him. Objects and light slowed, sounds muffled, even the soft late summer breeze stilled on his slightly sweaty skin. He began running to avoid Toph who was moving in a slow motion.

The girl concentrated hard, head slightly tilted as her ears and bare feet tried to detect the super-fast movement of Aang. But, of course, in less than five seconds, Toph set the chain twirling towards Aang's legs and sent him crashing down.

She was determined not to tell him that she had been sensing the metal clasp that held his Air Nomad bead bracelet together.

Gyatso appeared, carrying a tray of lemonade and pieces of salted fruit, smiling fondly at the two kids. They moved around a lot before the Order found them and provided them this junkyard as a safe haven, but even so circumstances often forced them to move out every now and then. As the result, Aang, the good-natured and friendly kid, so rarely had friends, especially those who could see past the strange appearance his tattoos gave him.

Despite what they called themselves, the Air Nomads had no longer clung to their nomadic past since the massacre of the Western Air Temple nearly half a century ago, and then the Eastern Air Temple a few decades after that. Things got worse after the attack on the Southern Air Temple that began his and Aang's exodus, and, despite the protection the World Council provided the Air Nomads in the Western Air Temple and their effort to preserve and repopulate the other temples, Gyatso had felt it safer for Aang if he relied on the protection of his brothers and sisters of the White Lotus instead, hence costing Aang of the opportunity to grow up with his Air Nomad peers.

Iroh had been particularly supportive of this difficult decision, assuring Gyatso that Aang would not be lacking of friends. Iroh recognized Aang's outgoing nature and had offered to support his education financially. Gyatso was thankful, and even more so since Iroh did not ask too many questions.

In the middle of enjoying the refreshment, a beat-up navy blue compact car arrived. Sokka got down and had the look of a child in a toy store.

"This place is amazing!" he exclaimed five seconds later with mouth full of pineapple. "Would it be alright if I peek through your collection? Maybe there are parts you don't need that I might use?"

"Of course, Sokka", Gyatso gave him his fatherly smile, pouring Katara another glass of his refreshing lemonade; his own recipe, with added mint and lemongrass. "I have no use for all this junk. Take whatever you need. Just tell me when you do, so I can help you; don't want a pile of junk cars fall on top of you now, do you?"

Katara thanked the old man and looked at her brother dryly. "Why would you need parts, anyway? Please tell me you are not building another robot."

The last time Sokka experimented with robotics, Katara lost her eyebrows in the ensuing explosion. Azula had made fun of her endlessly.

While Toph unabashedly laughed at the story with Sokka grinning, trying not to laugh himself, Aang asked the girl. "How are you friends with her, anyway?"

He had seen Katara and Azula together for a few times, but since the first day in the classroom during the orientation, Aang had sensed a deep bond between the two, an almost sisterly bond, despite how different the two girls were; Katara was caring, friendly, nurturing, and kind, while Azula came across as slightly haughty and a loner, and she scared Aang a lot.

Katara shrugged. "We met as kids at school", she sipped her lemonade. "We just moved here, and so did she. At school, an older kid tried to bully Azula, so I beat him up. Then, she helped me with my homework. Azula was my first friend in Republic City, and I was her first friend", then she frowned. "There is something odd about that girl. I can never leave her alone. She's like a puppy."

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Goldenbell – the Kais' Residence; Monday, 9 September 2013, 12:02 PM)_

Azula sneezed a little, missing a shot while playing Angry Bird on her phone on her bed.

"_Bless you."_

She could hear the smirk on his voice.

"_You girls do realize that we established this comm for work-related communication, right?"_

"This _is_ work related", Ty Lee chirped, totally ignoring the fact that she had spent nearly the last hour asking the 'hood boss' (that was how Azula referred to him) things about their names, background, abilities, etc. Ozai had appeared before them without any disguise and it would not be difficult to link his daughter and her two friends to Phoenix, Stealth, and Acro, which was why Ty Lee and Mai did not bother to conceal their identity.

The 'hoods', however, had expressed their reluctance to reveal their identities to the team, save Ozai, and the 'hood boss' was in his getup.

"At least tell me your codenames", Ty Lee huffed; most of her questions had been deflected expertly.

"_We don't have codenames",_ 'hood boss' smirked. _"We don't operate that way. We know who we are and that is enough for us."_

"But that is not enough for _us_", Ty Lee said, putting her hands on her waist. "If we are to work together, we should find a way to address you. I mean, we can keep calling you 'hood boss'—"

"_Hood boss…?"_

"—It's weird and not very superheroey", Ty Lee stopped and frowned, thinking. "How about we call you… _Ghost_."

"_Hmm, you should call my friend Ghost. She fits the name better",_ as 'hood boss' said it, a small picture of the female of his team showed up on the side; a small box appeared above her head, bearing her new codename, Ghost. "_And how about _Archer_…"_ another picture popped up, showing the bow-wielding member of the group. "…_and _Rock", the picture of the big burly member showed up last.

"Why Rock?" Ty Lee asked.

The hooded figure just smiled. _"You'll see."_

"And what about you?" Ty Lee pressed her forehead with her finger, thinking. "Ummm, what should we call you?"

"_Well, I'm impartial to… _theDark One_."_

Azula's ear twitched.

"The Dark One?" Mai arched a brow. "Like the spirit from children story?"

**-A-I-R-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – River Street; Monday, 9 September 2013, 12:29 PM)_

Aang did not understand what Sokka meant when he said his car had never been the same since the big dude fell on it and ruined his engine. True to his words, Iroh had had the car rescued and fixed before returning it to Sokka two days after the incident. Sokka had been elated right before he got in his car and turned on the engine the next day. Aang himself found Carrie the car (Sokka named his car) ran a lot smoother and the slight rattle was no more.

If it was a good thing that came from the second attack of the Freedom Fighters, it was that he now wore his tattoo freely. From time to time, he would still wear a headband or a bandana to cover the one on his head, but he was, more often than not, found in a more summer appropriate short sleeved shirt and shorts now. He had spent part of his childhood moving around a lot with Gyatso around numerous, admittedly less culturally tolerant, Earth Kingdom cities and villages.

Gyatso had promised that their lives in the Republic City would be different and, so far, it had been quite memorable. In a good way.

Sokka drove Carrie into the familiar street and eased into the parking lot in front of the Jasmine Dragon. Iroh welcomed them warmly, ushering them into the crowded teashop, and after a nice lunch he insisted they had despite Katara's (and only Katara's) polite decline, Iroh invited them to the second floor of the teashop where his apartment was.

Despite his financial success and his affluent background, Iroh preferred a much more humble style when it comes to his apartment. The light green living room of his felt spacious, occupied by a simple bamboo TV cabinet, a wide Si Wong rug on the middle, and a set of bamboo framed couch. On the window, Iroh had set a wide Pai Sho table. He had also decorated the windowsill with small pots of herbs and flowers.

No one who saw this room would think that Iroh used to be wild party boy in his youth.

"Now, I'm sure you all have a few questions for me", the big-bellied man started as he sat down across the coffee table in front of the kids.

The four kids looked at each other. It was Sokka who spoke first. "We have more than a few questions", he said in all seriousness. "Let us begin with the most important one: what did you do to my car?!"

Katara froze his mouth together.

"I just happen to pass by", Iroh said a couple of minutes later, answering Katara's question while Sokka pressed his warm teacup on his mouth. "I saw Sokka's car and found that it was abandoned, so naturally, I was worried. I then went looking for you all to make sure you are all alright."

"You're lying", Toph said bluntly.

"I had thought your sense of hearing is strong enough to detect a person's heartbeat", Iroh laughed. "Now, I know for sure."

"Uh… no", it was Katara who replied. "I mean, we went through the backdoor of a random store and ended up in a random parking lot. You can't have been that lucky to find us that quickly."

Iroh stared at the Water Tribe girl for second before he broke down laughing.

"Alright, honestly, we have been keeping an eye on you", Iroh confessed, sipping his tea. "I know of you and your talents", his all-knowing amber eyes flicked to Toph and Aang. Aang gulped slightly. "There are parties interested in… say, nurturing those talents of yours and I happen to represent them."

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Huo Guo - Master Piandao's Martial Art Academy; Monday, 9 September 2013, 12:45 PM)_

"Wait, you have been watching us?" Korra protested.

"You three are quite a spectacle", Piandao turned his laptop to the three, showing a video on the metahuman tournament website, a pay-per-view, a match in which the Fire Ferrets participated.

They were sitting in Piandao's office, a small but comfy room, painted red and yellow.

"Oh, I have _not_ been stalking you", Piandao felt the need to clarify. "I am quite a fan of the Tournament. Although, in all honesty, I was rooting for the Iron Wolves in the last Summer Slam."

"We beat them", Korra said dryly.

"Yes, you did", Piandao sighed. "In any case, I have a preposition."

"Master, let me stop you there", Bolin interjected. "We are very very grateful for your guidance over the years. You taught us martial art and you recommended Mako to Iroh for the job at the Jasmine Dragon. And your special training helped us a lot in developing and controlling our superpowers. I mean, we didn't even know that Mako can make a burst of fire from his limbs and fly with it before your special training, and Korra can heal people with her water by channeling it to synch with somebody's blood and energy flow if she concentrates hard enough, and I'm sure I will find something about me that I don't yet know but will know in the future if I keep going to your special classes. But we are NOT going to throw a fight for you."

"That is good to know", Piandao stood up and motioned them to follow him. "But, that is not what I have in mind", he led the three out of the room and went up to the rooftop. "This city is sick", he said, standing behind the railing, looking out to the city. "More and more, we have people who have become too brazen. The Freedom Fighters, for example, attacked Rose Garden twice, not counting the small scale crimes they did in between. And they were not even close to the worst. What if I am to tell you that there is a secret war that has been going on for years, decades? What if I am to tell you that there are many like me?" he rubbed his left shoulder, seemingly lost in thought. "Many like me who fought that war in our youths, and still do now in some way?"

"I don't understand, Master", Mako said.

Piandao pointed at a shed on the corner of the rooftop. "I will enter that shed", he said. "You three have potential to fight and win this war, and I will help you, teach you, and guide you, should you choose to. Come with me, if you are willing. But, I must warn you: your life will never be the same. If you want to go back and go home, we will pretend that this conversation never happened."

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Monday, 9 September 2013, 01:12 PM)_

"We're in", Sokka decided, standing up.

"Very good", Iroh smiled.

They were now standing in the secret basement below the teashop, accessible through a secret door in the meat locker. The vast room was bricked and it consisted of a concrete floor, boxes and crates that Iroh hoped the kids would not ask him about, and a large computer screen on the side of the room, with a console below it.

On Ji was there and the others had been surprised to see her there.

"Iroh scouted me out a few weeks before you", On Ji explained to Katara. "If you are really going to do this, you are going to need someone who can provide rear support. That would be me."

"On Ji is a genius with computer", Iroh praised. "She also designed your costumes."

"Oh, yay, good job. They _look_ lovely", Toph crossed her arms petulantly, standing in front of her uniform.

On the side of the room, rectangular space had been carved, each about three times the width of a phone booth and twice deeper, and each housing a simple mannequin. Toph sensed about ten of them from side to side in total, but only the four in the middle were occupied by costumes and various equipment.

"Whatever is it, I'm not wearing that!" no, Toph did not need eyes to know the uniforms sucked. The skip in Sokka and Aang's heartbeat and the hitch in their breath when they first saw them was indication enough.

On Ji gasped. "They are designed with the latest technology and—"

"They're spandex!" Sokka nearly shrieked.

On Ji huffed.

Aang rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Uh… yeah, I gotta agree with Sokka and Toph here", he said diplomatically. "Look, what if we come up with our own design? Then, maybe you can… make them for us?"

On Ji reluctantly agree.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Katsuma – Gold Tower; Monday, 9 September 2013, 05:34 PM)_

In his lavishly furbished penthouse apartment, the Fire Nation boy lounged on his couch, checking his phone for messages exchanged between Iroh and Piandao, and toher messages from his people to him. He did love it when his plans came together. Scrolling down his message list, he found the one from Teo, notifying him of the result of the Boulder's initial test, and from the Boulder, expressing his displeasure from the experiment that left him with no small amount of grief.

There was a reason why he did not like Mondays. At the very least, a message from Lu Ten, an invitation to the movies with him and some of their mutual friends was a welcomed sight.

He got up and stretched, feeling weary despite this mildly decadent life afforded to him by his wealth. He turned off his TV and tapped one of the brick on the wall; a small door to the hidden cabinet masquerading as a square of three bricks across and four bricks down swung open.

Inside the hidden compartment were a couple stacks of cash; a loaded small caliber gun, a PPK, with a clip holster he took and secured on the waist of his pants, on his left abdomen; boxes of ammo and extra clips he ignored (he knew he would only need one single bullet); small bags with zipper and anti-flame and -water material containing fake passports, credit cards, and a small burn phone (he picked one up and decided not to take any). For extra precaution, he picked up one of the two silver rings held in a small box and wore them on his right index; a simple band with a rather thick circle as the headpiece.

Carrying his gun, he made his way to his room across the living room, wincing at the bright sunlight peeking from the glass window to his side. He took off his shirt, revealing a small but thick star-shaped scar on his chest where his heart was, and two small tattoos on his back, below his neck, separated by his spine, two halves of yin and yang; the dark yin on the right side, and the light yang on the left.

He went to his wardrobe and picked up a simple white T shirt he donned on before he dropped his wallet and anything that could identify him but his cellphone, and got out of the apartment, locking the door behind him.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Huo Guo - Master Piandao's Martial Art Academy; Monday, 9 September 2013, 05:45 PM)_

In the underground lair that, truth to be told, looked identical to the one Aang and his friends had just left, Korra and Bolin were busy tidying up the crates and boxes, moving them to the side with the help of Fat, the butler. Yes, Master Piandao had a butler. He was part of the Republic City's high society.

"You said you used to do this, Master?" Bolin grunted, heaving four boxes at the same time; having super strength means being taken advantage of in this sort of situation.

"Yes", Piandao smiled fondly at the crates and the memories. "Be careful with these", he instructed. "They contain equipment and gadgets that you may find useful in the future."

"Speaking of useful", Korra grumbled, putting down a crate and casting a sharp glare at Mako who had stopped doing the chore at some point and was busy with his phone with a rare and silly grin on his face.

"Oooh, don't bother him, Korra", Bolin arrived with a knowing smirk. "Bet he's talking to his new girlfriend", he made a kissy face.

"Mako had a boyfriend?" Korra gaped. "Since when?!"

"A couple of months ago, maybe", Bolin dropped his load and wiped his forehead. "Her name's Asami. She ran him over with her scooter."

"Why didn't he tell me?" Korra crossed her arms petulantly. "Why didn't _you_ tell me?"

"Because Mako said not to tell you", Bolin shrugged then it hit him. "…Opps."

Pabu chirped.

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Monday, 9 September 2013, 05:52 PM)_

Katara stood in front of the rows of uniform stand, lost in thought. She felt heavy pace approaching her and smelt fragrant jasmine leaves.

"We are really going to do this", she said to Iroh, as if trying to reassure herself.

"You will first receive training", Iroh said. "I have some experience in that area."

"You were_ a superhero_?" Katara asked incredulously.

Iroh laughed. "I wasn't always like this, you know", he patted his belly. "I was young and brash. I thought I was invincible… nothing could get me", he sighed. "I met some likeminded friends and we banded together. It was some of my fondest memory. And just between you and me", his voice dropped a little. "There may be booze involved."

Katara stifled a laugh.

"How many of you were there?" she asked, scanning the empty slots in the row.

"Many", Iroh replied with a mysterious smile. "This place is but a branch headquarter that I personally managed. As we grow, we began accepting memberships from all over the world and had operatives in every major city on Earth."

Then it hit Katara. "Wait a minute… you are the Peacekeepers!" she exclaimed, referring to the now defunct legendary group of superpowered vigilantes.

Iroh laughed again. "Yes, we _were_", he corrected with a wink.

"You disappeared", Katara said in awe. "Some say you were dead, all of you. Killed."

"Some of us, yes", Iroh smiled sadly. "Those who remain scattered, and most found and joined a cause greater than ourselves."

"What cause?"

"Story for another day, my dear."

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Rookwood - Varrick's Global Industry Republic Branch; Monday, 9 September 2013, 08:10 PM)_

In the strangely and unusually decorated private dining room, with walls covered entirely of artworks that was really hard to determine, like the squiggly cheese statue made of broze, framed on the right and left by identical statues made of real cheese, Varrick in his flamboyant blue suit with fur rim and flowery weaved cuff cut into his steak with quite a gusto.

His guest, a Fire Nation teenager in a simple white T shirt, hid his smirk behind his netted hands, barely touching his dinner.

"Exquisite!" Varrick exclaimed, swallowing his last bite. "Zhu Li! Do the thing!"

His assistant who had been standing behind him moved and lit his glass of cocktail on fire with a match and wiped his mouth clean with a napkin.

"Fascinating", the boy said finally, putting his arms off the table and leaned back to his chair.

"A balanced meal is the key to balanced nutrition, which is the key to balanced mind, and balanced mind keeps the world in balance", Varrick quoted wisely, gulping his cocktail fire and all, screaming loudly in the aftermath.

"If you say so", the Fire Nation boy's smile melted as he drew his gun out and took a shot at the curtain behind the host.

A man clad in a dark tactical suit collapsed, screaming from the gunshot wound on his kneecap.

"Zhu Li! Do the thing! Do it right now!"

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tosako –the United Nations Academy; Monday, 16 September 2013, 08:10 AM)_

Sitting on the backseat on Zuko's convertible with her hood on, Azula fished out her phone from her pocket and flashed a rare smile. Zuko had noticed his sister's recent elevated mood, usually triggered by whoever it was on the other side of that phone, and naturally he suspected she had a boyfriend now.

Zuko made a silent vow to steer clear of the affair.

He remembered one time when Azula was in the 7th grade, attending a school dance, a boy asked her out on a dance. Unfortunately for the said boy, it was a school's Valentine Father-Daughter/Mother-Son Dance. Ozai was there and very unhappy.

The next day, the boy moved out of the city.

A military Humvee pulled over next to Zuko's convertible and Katara jumped down from it, waving her thanks at Bato who drove away. She joined the girls at the backseat of Zuko's car and attempted to peek on Azula's phone to no avail.

"You have been acting weird lately", Katara commented.

"Weirder than usual?" Azula asked.

"Yes", replied everyone present, including Toph who caught their conversation as she and Aang made their way towards them.

"Arrow", Azula, with her trademark crass, openly pointed at Aang's forehead. The Air Nomad boy grinned sheepishly.

"Dude, the tattoo is real?" Toph slugged his arms. "I thought you guys were messing with me!"

Katara got down from the car and joined the two.

Azula watched the three walked into the school with curiosity.

Ty Lee got up and strode into the school building, ignoring Mai who asked her where she was going.

In the meantime, Mako drove the Jasmine Dragon van and dropped Bolin, Korra, and the Storm kids off in front of the school. He then drove the van across the street to the teashop while Korra bid her farewell and made her way to the end of the road where she would take a bus to her campus.

Grabbing Meelo who was about to run off somewhere, Bolin mimicked a giant bear and chased the giggling girls into the school with Meelo over his shoulder. Dutifully, Bolin herded them to their classroom where they met their peers and Ms. Lee, their supervising teacher, and then he made his way to the gym. They gym was bustling with students dusting off the decorations and cleaning the room, some were carrying chairs and tables into the room, others were rechecking the lights and sound system.

Bolin did not find them anywhere, but he did see Aang and Toph helping out. He then made his way to back to the school building and paced towards the door right across from the principal's office; the main entrance to the school basement. Bolin walked down the stairs and in the brightly lit room where they keep spare school equipment, he found Ty Lee and Katara; the former was teaching the latter some kind of martial art move.

They began exchanging news and information.

"Master Piandao does not suspect anything then?" Katara asked Bolin.

"No, not at all", he said. "So, you say they were the Alliance of Peacekeepers and Iroh and Master Piandao were members?"

"Yes, Iroh told me they were", Katara tapped her tablet and brought up two photographs of masked vigilantes. "I think Iroh used to be Dragon", she showed the other two a picture of a muscular man in a dark-red body armor with exquisite dark trim that formed the scales of a dragon, with a full face masked helmet with three slits across the upper face and fanged mouth of a beast on the lower part. "I'm basing my guess on the height, so I can't really be sure. As for Master Piandao, I'm pretty sure he was Swordsmaster", Katara showed another picture of a man in a simple dark Eastern Fire Nation garb, wearing dark bandana and a cloth mask, exposing only his eyes.

"Master Piandao does wear that kind of clothes often", Ty Lee nodded. "But it's dark red."

"That's because it's our official uniform", Bolin reminded her.

"Oh, right…"

"Anyway, we can't be sure of who is who yet at this point", Katara brought their attention back to the matter at hand. "And you say you can get in contact with Phoenix, Acro, and Stealth?" she asked Ty Lee who giggled.

"They really do need a team name, huh?" she chuckled. "And, yes, I can. I know a way to contact them, that's all I can say."

"Good enough", Katara pondered aloud. "Naturally, I will appreciate it if you and Mako can keep this a secret from Korra. And while we're on the subject, no words to Aang and Toph as well."

Turning to Ty Lee, Katara eyed the girl with uncertainty.

"I know, I know, you are worried about Azula", Ty Lee nodded, still smiling. "Don't worry, I have no intention to involve her in this at all."

"I'm more worried about her suspecting something", Katara sighed. "She can be unpredictable."

"I can handle her", Ty Lee smirked. "I've known her longer than you. I know how to handle her."

"Alright, so it's agreed", Bolin rubbed his hands together. "Katara will investigate Iroh, Mako and me will investigate Master Piandao, and Ty Lee will help us mediate and provide rear support if need them."

"There is this girl, On Ji", Katara rubbed her chin, thinking. "I still don't know how she got involved in all of this, but Iroh seems to trust her. I want to dig deeper and see if she can be persuaded to help us."

Ty Lee nodded. "I will hack into school server and get as much information as I can about her."

"So, have Iroh decided on your debut mission?" Bolin asked casually as they began digging through the storeroom for equipment, an alibi should they need.

Katara shook her head as she picked up a wire spool. "We were supposed to go to the teashop tonight for briefing and our improved costumes", she made a face.

"Improved costumes?" Bolin arched a brow.

"Yeah", Katara shivered. "Don't tell me Master Piandao managed to talk you guys into wearing those spandexes."

"What spandexes?" Bolin frowned. "Master Piandao asked us to come up with our own design. And no one would be wearing spandex."

Katara groaned, Ty Lee giggled. "I knew Master Piandao would've been a better mentor", Katara griped.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Monday, 16 September 2013, 09:17 AM)_

Wearing the teashop's green apron over his shirt, Zuko, carrying a tray of scones and tea, approached the table on which the Fire Nation customer was hidden behind the copy of Republic Report; the headline news read _'Investigation on Varrick's Assassination Attempt Continued'_, bearing the news of the ongoing effort to find those responsible for the assassination attempt on the man's life.

Coincidentally, the TV set hanging on the corner of the room showed the interview with the aforementioned man. _"I was lucky! Lucky, I tell ya!"_ Varrick said enthusiastically to the numerous microphones_. "There I was having a nice dinner with a guest who was a dear dear friend of mine. Oh boy, we have the best water buffalo steak you would ever taste, and then… BOOOM! The would-be assassin came out with a machine gun! Or was it a bazooka? Well, either way, it was dangerous! And then—"_

"Bazooka?" Zuko muttered, picking up a piece of scone.

"Varrick is a little touched in the head", the Fire Nation boy put down his newspaper and reached for his spiced oolong tea. "I suspect he was dropped as a baby."

Taking a bite of his scone, Zuko tried not to be bothered by the boy's stare on the burn scar on the left side of his face. He had gotten used to it by now.

The Fire Nation teenager picked up a small wooden box with color of dark red and intricate cloudy flame engraving that Zuko found exceedingly familiar though he could not seem to place it in his memory of when he had seen such artwork.

"Family recipe", he said, putting the box on the table and shoving it to Zuko. "All herbal, all for external use. There're some instructions there on how to apply the medicine. There's a cream that can help with the pain."

Zuko frowned a little.

"Don't look at me like that", the boy smiled kindly. "Lu Ten asked me to. I do owe him a favor."

"Thanks", Zuko muttered, pulling the box to his side of the table.

The other boy continued staring.

Zuko instinctively ran his fingers through his now short hair. "What?"

"Nothing", the Fire Nation boy averted his eyes finally, gulping down his glass and putting a few yuans on the table. "Give my regards to Iroh", he said, patting Zuko on the shoulder on his way out. Zuko followed him out with his eyes and, as the boy exited the teashop, he noticed a group of girls from the school, sitting a few tables away, were staring at him. The girls sheepishly turned and began talking in hushed tone.

Outside, the Fire Nation boy walked slowly to the parking lot, looking up midwalk to enjoy the sunlight. A black sedan turned on and pulled out, moving to the boy. He entered the backseat and his driver, the big, bearded, muscular man with tanned skin and green eyes, looked at him through the rearview mirror.

"All in good time, Rocky", the boy smiled and relaxed, drifting off to sleep.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Central District – Republic City Police Department; Monday, 16 September 2013, 10:00 AM)_

Chief Bei Fong strode across the headquarters office, across rows of desks and detectives who stood and saluted as she walked by. A newbie in a suit, a man in his mid-twenty, average height and rather thin, with unmistakably Fire Nation pale skin and amber eyes, tripped and dropped a box of bullets in front of her. Sighing, Lin Bei Fong pointed her palm at the scattered bullets and, with a slight feat of concentration, she used her magnetism manipulation power to picked up the bullets and put them back neatly to the box in the newbie's hand.

"Sorry, Chief", the newbie saluted.

"Nice haircut, Taka", Lin commented as she passed the man and walked into her office. During Taka's interview, before joining the force as a probationary investigator, he had shown up with a ponytail. Despite his glowing resume –Fire Nation Military Academy, three years in Fire Nation Military, trained as a sniper in the infamous Fire Nation Yu Yan Division, and graduated with flying colors from Republic Law Enforcement Training Center-, Lin Bei Fong spared the man not in her chiding him for his thuggish appearance.

Exhaling in relief, Taka returned to his desk, a formation of four in a large cubicle that he shared with his supervisor and his supervisor's partner. Chit Sang was grinning while Jee gave him a glare as Taka stored the box of bullets in the unoccupied desk beside Chit Sang and sat on his desk in front of it, the one next to Jee.

"You look nervous", Chit Sang commented airily.

"Well…" Taka exasperated.

"Stop fooling around", Jee growled.

Chit Sang waved it off. "Chief Bei Fong is always stiff", he reassured Taka. "She's still sore about the attack on the prisoners convoy. And then there is the Freedom Fighters and June."

"I still can't believe she accepted June's applications", Jee grumbled.

"June did go through the proper training before", Chit Sang said, opening a pack chips. "Have I told you that we were in the same class in RLETC?"

Jee glared at him but Chit Sang, offering Taka some of his chips, did not notice.

"She was actually offered a spot in the Metal Team, but she turned it down", Chit Sang continued. "She said it's because she's not compatible with the meta-device, but, if you ask me, running around in metal armor is just not her style. She's more of a tracker."

"Woof!"

"Actually", June appeared, dropping her backpack on the unoccupied table, letting Nyla loose on Chit Sang and his chips. "_She's_ more of a tracker. I just like pummeling people with my bare hands."

"Bad doggie!" Chit Sang fought valiantly for his chips.

June sat down and propped her feet up on the table. She was wearing usually leather jacket and boots, drawing a displeasure glare from Jee.

Saving her from Jee's biting comment was Jee's phone ringing. He picked it up, listened to it for a few seconds, and ended it with a curt. "Yes, Ma'am."

Turning to his team, he said. "We've got a case."

Fifteen minutes later, they found themselves coursing through the city in two different cars; Jee and their old sedan with Taka, and Chit Sang and June, driving their newly issued SUV.

"So, you say he can turn his skin into scales", Taka asked in disbelief.

"Yes, scales, like snake", Jee shuddered.

"That's a rather useless ability", Taka grimaced. "And he got bailed?"

"Petty larceny", Jee said. "And he got bailed by this law firm. Can't seem to remember the name."

"We're here", Taka said as they neared the demolished building on Kasu Street.

"You think?" Jee replied dryly, parking the car in front of the yellow police tape.

The building had been a very quaint flower shop until an explosion that, now that Jee and his team got a closer look, seemed to have originated from the middle of the store.

"Several people are injured", said the middle-aged coroner, reading from a pad. "No deaths, but a couple of patrons are in critical state and undergoing surgery as we speak."

"Witness statement from those caught in the explosion?" Jee asked.

"None yet", the coroner replied. "They are all quite shaken and the ambulance took them all to the hospital."

Jee looked around and saw Chit Sang and Taka already interviewing citizens standing outside the tape. "Any guess on what caused the explosion?" he asked the coroner.

"It could be any number of thing", the man said, packing his bag of equipment. "That's for your team to find out. Time to show off your newly acquired forensic skills", the man grinned, patting Jee on the shoulder as he walked to his police van that was his transport.

"Yeah, forensic skills", Jee muttered. "Two people on interview. I want to kill someone."

"We're a new team, get used to it for now", June said, keeping an eye on Nyla who sniffed around. "Besides, Taka is not yet used to investigative techniques."

"And you are?" Jee sniped.

June merely smirked. "Well, I _was_ a bounty hunter. And I _never_ missed my mark."

Nyla whined loudly, walking in circle and sniffed around a little, and whined again softly, approaching June with ears down.

"No explosives", June concluded, patting her dog on the head. "And it doesn't seem like they run gas pipe in the store area."

"The explosion area seems to burst outward, from the store, not from the wall or floor", Jee concurred, pointing at the scorch marks on the walls and floor. "Something caused the explosion."

"Or someone", June added grimly. "I'll check with some of my contacts."

"A metahuman with the power to cause explosion?" Jee sighed.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – the United Nations Academy; Monday, 16 September 2013, 11:49 AM)_

When Katara found her, Azula was sitting under a tree in the courtyard, surrounded by geekish looking students. She looked out of place, a pretty, delicate looking girl in the middle of so many thick glasses, teeth braces, books, nerdish hair, and yet she was truly in her element, among her own people. Azula was, after all, the prized member of the Science Club; fourteen years old but already received standing offer from many top universities in the Republic.

Katara approached her and sat next to her, tuning herself out from the talk about… molecules and stuff that she would never ever understand. She opened the lunchbox she had with her, containing slices of green apples. Azula took from her satchel a jar of peanut butter. Katara took the jar, scooped some peanut butter with a slice of apple and gave it to Azula. The Science Club watched the tradition and decided not to comment.

"So, you see", Azula took a bite of her apple. "Despite being 98% genetically similar, none would mistake you or me with a chimpanzee."

"They would if you keep talking with your mouth full", Katara chided.

"Where have you been?" Azula interrogated her right away after dismissing the Science Club.

Katara looked at the Fire Nation girl witheringly. "I was helping out, like you should have", she sighed. "You know, if you act more like a regular girl—"

"Would you really want me to?" Azula asked with that smirk of hers.

That got Katara to rethink her words. "Yeah, you're right", she sighed. "You are one complicated person, Azula Kai."

"And you know me so well, Katara Waters", Azula smirked, playfully hugging the other girl. "If I were gay, I'd go out with you."

"Why don't we? It's been awhile since we go out, just the two of us", Katara thought.

"Because us going out was us telling our parents we'd go to the City Library but snuck out and watched Pro-Meta", Azula rested the side of her head on Katara's shoulder, reminiscing. When they were younger, they did that almost every Saturday but they had stopped doing that for almost a year now; since Azula started being Phoenix.

"We started going to movies too sometimes", Katara nibbled on her apple. "Why don't we go to movies tonight?"

"What's playing?" Azula yawned, getting comfy on Katara's shoulder while Katara checked her phone.

"There's Yogi Bear. You like that one", Katara smirked.

"Sure", Azula straightened up and stretched. "I'll take care of transport."

Their phones beeped at the same time.

Azula received a text from her father: _'found him.'_

While Katara got one from Aang: _'teashop 7pm'_

"Rain check", they said in tandem.

**-A-I-R-**

_(Republic City, North Plain – the Storms' Residence; Monday, 16 September 2013, 01:12 PM)_

A small honeybee buzzed and landed on the half-eaten piece of watermelon dangling on Gyatso's hand. The former Air Monk himself was sleeping, sprawling on the yellow sunlounger, looking less than dignified in a white T shirt and red polka dot shorts, face half hidden under his straw hat. His arrow tattoos were showing on his wrinkled skin, testament of his past life.

Appa, the large white dog, woke up from his nap, whined a little as he heard the faraway sound, and roused up, barking loudly. The barking jolted Gyatso awake.

Yawning and stretching, Gyatso got up and rubbed his sore back, taking a bite of his watermelon absentmindedly. "What is it, boy?" he asked Appa. Appa looked at him with its big brown eyes and continued barking. Scoffing, Gyatso threw the watermelon to the ground near Appa.

The little bee from before buzzed around, getting nearer to the old monk's face.

"Why, hello there", Gyatso smiled broadly at the insect, setting his hat straight. "I didn't know we have a neighbor."

A dark sedan approached, maneuvering expertly through the maze of scrapped cars and metal. Gyatso sometimes wonder if installing wire fences around the compound had been redundant. Wincing from the reflection of sunlight on the car's hood, Gyatso approached the car as it stopped in front of his plane/house.

Ozai looked resplendent as always in his dark suit and oiled hair. His driver opened his door for him and stepped away to give his master and the host some privacy.

"In another world", Gyatso inclined his head slightly, a sign of begrudging respect despite his still airy and friendly expression. "We wouldn't have been friends."

"'_Friends'_ is pushing it too far", he refused Gyatso's offer to enter the plane, choosing instead to stay out of the contraption, and to stay standing despite Gyatso's gesturing to the empty sunlounger.

"So, to what do I owe this visit from his imperial majesty?" Gyatso got comfy on his sunlounger, sly glint in his stormy gray eyes.

Ozai remained stern. "The so-called Freedom Fighters injured my son and I have finally tracked them down. I want retribution."

"Such an ugly word", Gyatso sighed.

"Don't tell me similar thought has never crossed your mind, old monk", Ozai seethed. "All those lives lost under your watch", he smirked cruelly. "Those children…"

For a man as old and thin as he, Gyatso moved very fast and he packed quite a wallop. Ozai managed to raise his arms to defend against Gyatso's highly refined movement of the Air Nomad's Ba Gua, which was quite a feat considering Gyatso was an expert combatant and had been a highly revered martial art teacher to his people, specializing in a move called Twin Cloud Palms, the one he had just used on Ozai.

Spinning, Gyatso lowered his stance and drilled his elbow to Ozai who just took it. Spinning to the reverse direction, Gyatso pushed his palms forward along with the momentum for another Twin Cloud Palms, scoring a hit on Ozai's abdomen, and added a dozen fast palm strikes, all Ozai took like they were nothing.

"Is that all?" the taller, bigger, younger man asked. Ozai's hand moved fast and caught Gyatso by his neck, lifting the chocking old man off the ground like he weighed nothing at all.

Grabbing his captor's arm in useless attempt to free himself, Gyatso unwittingly pulled Ozai's sleeve up, and he noticed thickened and blackened veins under Ozai's pale skin. "Oh, you messed up son of a—"

"The reason you are alive, monk…" Ozai half growled half sneered. "… is because a promise I made to my brother. Be grateful and know your place."

Staring indignantly, Gyatso said nothing. Slowly, he stopped struggling and Ozai let him go.

Heaving as if he had just run a marathon, Gyatso slumped down on his seat and sighed. "So, what is this you say about _my_ Freedom Fighters?"

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Monday, 16 September 2013, 01:15 PM)_

June took a sip of her iced tea calmly, ignoring Chit Sang's loud belch. Jee smacked the later upside the head. "Are we really that bored?" June asked the table flatly. "Why do you insist on coming with me to meet my contacts?"

"You're the only lead we have", Jee grumbled. "Forensic report has arrived, confirming our suspicion of a metahuman involvement, but no one in our database has a power that could cause this."

"Also, Jee's been talking bout this place", Chit Sang added, working through his fries and oblivious to Jee's death glare. "He said this place is run by some big shot Fire Nation military man."

"Former", Jee begrudgingly corrected. "Also, his tea is world famous."

June shook her head in something caught between disbelief and disgust. "You Fire Nation are weird weird people."

"Says the only Earth Kingdom _girl_ working with three Fire Nation _boys_", Jee bit back.

"Oh, haha, Earth Kingdom are sexist. Yeah, I got that", June yawned. "Why do you think I leave?"

"Where did Taka run off to?" Chit Sang looked around. "He said he'd meet us here."

"Didn't he say something about illegal immigrants", June frowned, throwing a piece of meat to Nyla; the Doberman sat next to her on the floor.

"No metahumans in our database match the power we're looking for, so it might be meta from other countries who got here illegally", Jee added. "I hate cases like this. I don't like just having to rely on only one lead."

"What other choice do we have?" June sat back. "Witnesses didn't see or hear anything, no traces of chemicals, and the security camera didn't catch anything unusual. It's just the explosion came out of nowhere, almost as if the _air_ itself exploded."

"That's because it did", Taka arrived, looking slightly disheveled but excited.

"You okay, lil dude?" Chit Sang looked worried.

"Yeah, no, I'm okay. Just had to wrangle with some… big guys", Taka tidied his tie and pulled out a brown folder from inside his jacket. "I know some people from the…" he glanced nervously at June. "…um, bounty hunter circles, t-the bad kind, the bad illegal kind."

"Not offended at all", June said with a pleasant snarl.

"Yeah… anyway, they have some record that we don't have in our system", Taka opened the folder and it contains a picture of a woman of Fire Nation origin, with amber eyes, dark brown hair with shaved sides, and a strange tattoo on her forehead; Jee, hailing from the Eastern Islands of Fire Nation archipelago, recognized it as once as some sort of tattoo of a mysterious cult. "P'Li", Taka said. "Strange name."

"It's Fire Nation tribal name", Jee explained grimly.

"You know her?" June asked, staring intently at the Fire Nation expatriate.

"No, not her", Jee's jaw hardened. "But, I recognize that tattoo. A man with similar tattoo nearly killed me when I was in the military."

"Is this that tank story?" Chit Sang frowned. "I thought you said it was an antitank missile that hit your tank."

"I was in the tank, I didn't see", Jee said. "Some say it was a missile, some say it was some strange light that exploded. They all did say they saw a man with tattoo like that."

"The hunters said this woman is wanted in Fire Nation for an attempted murder", Taka explained as Chit Sang and Jee checked the documents. "She had the misfortune of running into hiding in a part of Earth Kingdom where metahuman rules are strict. She resisted arrest when the authority wanted to take her into custody and was injured. They collected pictures, DNA sample, and some footage of her abilities."

Jee picked up a CD in a plastic case that came in the folder.

"I watched it on my way here", Taka took a gulp from a glass of water a waiter brought him. "It looks interesting. I can't really describe it."

"Iroh!" June exclaimed as the old man approached their table; she got up and gave the man a short hug and a peck on the cheek.

"It has been awhile", Iroh smiled, turning to the rest of the table. "Ah, former Lieutenant Jee of Fire Nation Navy", Jee nodded respectfully. "And you must be Taka", Iroh smiled at the newbie. "I heard a lot of good things about you."

"And me?" Chit Sang felt left out.

"Iroh, dear", June picked up a random picture of P'Li from the table and walked Iroh inside the teashop, linking arm with him. "May I have a word?"

"You only called me 'dear' when you want something", Iroh laughed. "As I understand it, you still think I am creepy."

"You did grope my breasts that one time."

"I swear by any god there is: I slipped."

"What do you know about this woman?" June showed him the picture.

Iroh studied the picture carefully. "She is a member of the Agni Flame Sect", Iroh surmised. "That tattoo is the marking of the Sect. Dangerous people", Iroh said grimly. "In old Fire Nation stories, they supposedly received some magical power from Agni, the old god of flame; of course, at the time, people did not know what metahumans are", he returned to picture. "This woman, if she indeed has the ability, should be able to make things go up in flame. 'To make flame come to life' says the old story."

"This woman is no story", June said. "She's real."

"Or an imposter wannabe", Iroh countered wisely. "It's an old Fire Nation folktale, June. It is wise not to take it too seriously."

"Are you really saying you don't have any information about this woman or her ilk?" June smiled venomously. "Have you really never met anyone like her?" she raised the picture tentatively over the lower half of her face.

Iroh held on for a few seconds before he caved in. "Northwest Republic", he said. "Fire Nation cargo ships often ship illegal immigrants and drop them there; a small port town just west of Xi Hai."

"Xi Hai, west, got it", June smirked; she leaned closer and whispered/moaned to the old man's ear. "You're the best…"

"I'm going to have a heart attack now."

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City; Wang Lung Heights – United Nations University; Monday, 16 September 2013, 02:23 PM)_

Mumbling to herself, Korra came out of the computer lab, clutching a stack of books and reading a message from Tenzin on her phone. She rammed into Asami.

"Oh, so sorry", Korra apologized, picking up her books.

"It's okay", Asami smiled sweetly, helping the other girl. "Mako said the Ferrets are going to have a match tonight?"

"Well, we don't know yet", Korra evaded, grinning awkwardly, walking out the campus with Asami. "We are asked to come as a… uh, backup team. Just in case on the other… non-backup teams couldn't fight or don't show up or something."

"I never knew they have a rule like that", Asami said. "Is that a new rule?" she asked with a lilt that showed a little suspicion.

"Yes! Yes, new rule!" Korra snatched the bait. "Very very new. So new that it hasn't even been added to the rule book just yet."

"I see", Asami said. She bid her goodbye and Korra breathed out in relief.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Wang Lung Heights – the Kwan's Residence; Monday, 16 September 2013, 03:00 PM)_

Suki, with a little toddler on her lap, replied Sokka's message of cancelling their dinner date, saying it was alright. That being said, Sokka had been cancelling a lot of dates lately and Suki had begun to worry. He knew Sokka was kept busy in the University, being some sort of… genius, for the lack of word, that he was. The Water Tribe boy breezed through high school and received advanced acceptance to the University; a path that Azula would soon follow, Suki believed, which was why the two seemed to get along well. In the University, Sokka was part of several projects and he had his own personal research projects as well.

Walking to the kitchen with the toddler, one of her cousins, in her arms, Suki went to the cabinet and took a clean glass. She moved to the fridge, a normal looking one with a strange tap coming out from the freezer door. Sokka had installed that at one point, with the consent of Suki's Uncle Tahn. It had a sensor that can tell when a glass is underneath it and dispense cold water automatically. Suki half-filled the glass with cold water and went to the tap on the sink to fill the glass with normal temperature water. Carefully, she held the glass for her cousin; the toddler gave her a slightly toothless grin when she finished drinking.

"Time for a nap?" Suki asked, wiping the toddler's mouth with her fingers.

The toddler nodded and yawned.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Huo Guo - Master Piandao's Martial Art Academy; Monday, 16 September 2013, 08:20 PM)_

"Not bad, not bad", Bolin commented, moving his joints in his new uniform; a tightfitting suit of dark green color under a gray vest and a cassock with short knee-length cape, a pair of leather fingerless gloves, a utility belt of black color, and a full-face obsidian-black mask with two slits for eyeholes and nothing else.

"Pretty comfy", Korra agreed, wearing her uniform that was similar to Bolin's, safe for the navy blue theme. Mako and his dark red suit said nothing.

"Good", Piandao nodded, satisfied with the response. "Now, Fat and myself will provide combat support in each mission. Check your communicator", Piandao ordered. The three put on their masks and did as they were told. "Your mission", Piandao continued; Fat tapped into the computer and a hologram display appeared in the center of the room, above a circle on the ground that bore a crest of White Lotus.

The hologram displayed a mugshot of a well-known leader of a triad, Lightning Bolt Zolt and several pictures depicting some men in what appeared to be a warehouse moving crates, and in one of the pictures, it showed a transaction.

"Triple Threat Triad have been smuggling drugs on an island offshore", a map appeared next with an X marking the said island. "Your objective: disrupt the deal that would be going on at midnight."

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Monday, 16 September 2013, 08:23 PM)_

"Your objective is simply to take them down, subdue them like what you did with the Freedom Fighters the other day at the parking lot, and get away from there", Iroh explained to his team while On Ji watched from the sideline. "Remember, the animals they are smuggling are rare and some are endangered species. Under no circumstances are you to put them in any dangerous situation."

"If possible, bring the fight to this clearing", On Ji typed into the computer and brought forth an overhead view of the place and marked a clearing nearby with a red X. "Now, before we begin", she said in excitedly. "Tell me what you think about your costumes?"

"Awesome!" Sokka, wearing blue armor with white fur trim and gray blue wolf helmet, grinned widely; his outfit bore striking resemblance to the Wolf Warrior armor of the Southern Water Tribe, but with a high-tech bracer of his own design on the left arm, a futuristic looking rifle, and a pair of plasma gun holstered on his thighs.

"You have really outdone yourself, On Ji", Katara said kindly, wearing the deep blue dress and veiled hat of the Painted Lady, a Water Spirit that, at some point, was worshipped in the Southern Water Tribe and some part of the Fire Nation. "Although…" she continued uncomfortably. "…you can't expect me to rely on just a veil to hide my identity, right?"

On Ji grinned. "Put your pinky on that seashell", On Ji said, pointing at the seashell plate on Katara's chest.

Katara tentatively did so and crimson red streaks appeared on her skin, forming the tribal markings of the Painted Lady on her body and face, which included the markings that covered her cheek bone, surrounded her eyes, on her chin and her forehead, making it impossible to recognize her. "Again, I am impressed. What is this made of?"

"You don't have to know", On Ji evaded. "Remember, pinky. Only the print of your pinky works."

"Wait, I don't get it", Toph said. "What happened when she pressed the seashell with her pinky?" she asked. Toph had not complained much about her outfit; dark plated armors from neck down, with a coil of thick wire attached to her back, and dark metal helmet that had a slit across the face where the eyes were that she held in her hand at that moment. Her boots were also metal, but with removable soles.

"Uh… some red paint marking appeared on her arms and face", Aang said. He himself wore an outfit that resembled the traditional Air Nomad garb, but with a hooded shoulder mantle and a part on the neck that he could wear like a mask that cover his lower face. Attached on her waist were a couple holsters that housed his retractable batons, the one that he could combine into a glider staff.

"One question though", Katara raised her hand. "How come I'm the only one with no weapons?"

They all looked at her, even Toph, and proceeded to ignore her.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Various Locations; Monday, 16 September 2013, 08:59 PM)_

At exactly 09:00 PM, four individuals received a call from a private number simultaneously. Asami, in her room, lying on her stomach while reading a textbook, reached out to her phone and checked the caller id; Suki, tucking her young cousins in, felt her phone buzzed in her pocket; Haru, lazing around in the living room of the Kwan's Residence, halted his pizza on its track to his opened mouth when his phone roared loudly on the table in front of him; and a girl with brown hair and eyes, stepped out of her bathroom, dripping and clad in a short towel that wrapped her body, showing angry burn scar on her right leg, strode to her bed where her phone rang loudly.

The call went off in exactly five seconds.

At exactly 09:01 PM, the call went through again.

The four different individuals answered the call.

"Hello?"

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Triple Threat Triad's Secret Warehouse; Monday, 16 September 2013, 11:23 PM)_

"_Should we at least get a codename?"_ Bolin suggested through the communicator. Mako, hidden by his lonesome on a branch, inside the thick foliage, sighed.

"_That's a good idea",_ Korra agreed. _"I mean, _Unit 3_ is a bit… uh…"_

"_Not very superheroey",_ Bolin commented. "_And truthfully, it makes us sound like we're a bunch of real estate property."_

Mako grunted. "Can we just stay focus here?"

"_Although I do agree with Mako",_ Piandao said. _"Perhaps codenames are not such a bad idea."_

"_Uh… Uh…! I call dibs on… Super Dude",_ Bolin said.

Korra snorted. _"Let's call you_ _Muscle_", she snickered.

"Let's not", said Mako, Piandao, and Fat.

"_Oh, hey, how about Strongman", _Korra suggested_. "You know, like circus strongman but we call you that because you have super strength?" _

"_Interestingly enough, I _was_ a circus strongman when I was little_", Bolin said._ "Alright then, from now on, I'm _Strongman_."_

"_You worked in a circus?"_ Korra asked with skepticism in her voice. _"What did Mako do? He juggled?"_

"_No, he was the fire eater",_ Bolin replied. Mako mentally smacked his forehead.

Korra snickered. _"Should we call Mako Fire Eater then?"_

Luckily, Master Piandao interjected with his idea. "_Torcher_", the Master said. _"A superhero I knew had that name as a second option."_

"_Oooh, are you talking about—"_

"So, _Torcher_, huh?" Mako interrupted quickly before Bolin could finish that sentence. "I like that", Mako drawled, hoping to hell Bolin realized his mistake.

"_Uh... yeah, Torcher. T-that's good, cool, and uh… torchy",_ Bolin ended with a nervous laugh.

"And maybe for Korra, we can call her… uh, something… water related", Mako tried to steer the conversation deeper.

"_Yeaaahh, Something-Water-Related is quite a mouthful"_, Korra sniped; Bolin laughed. _"Actually, I wanna be called_ Torrent."

"_Torrent_?" Bolin asked. "_Why_ _Torrent_?"

Mako could literally hear Korra's smirk. _"You'll see."_

**-A-I-R-**

_(Republic City, Route 17; Monday, 16 September 2013, 11:23 PM)_

"For the last time, Toph: I am not calling myself Twinkle Toes", Aang hissed, hidden behind a bush on the side of the highway with Sokka.

"_Or just Twinkles",_ Toph suggested; Katara, against her better judgment, let out a stifled laugh. _"I am so sorry, Aang",_ the _Painted Lady_ apologized.

Aang sighed; like he could be mad at her.

"Why _Blind Bandit_?" Sokka asked. "I mean… well, the Blind part is…uh, obvious. But, Bandit?"

"_I dunno",_ Toph shrugged. _"I like the sound of it. And obvious? As obvious as _Wolfman_?"_

"There's nothing wrong with Wolfman", Sokka raised his voice; Aang clamped his mouth.

"_I thought for sure you'd go for Blue Wolf, or Ice Wolf", _Katara concurred with Toph_. "Oh!_ _Artic Wolf!"_

"Artic Wolf? That is so… actually, it sounds better! Is it too late to change my name?" Sokka asked hopefully.

"_Yeaaahh… I already put your name in",_ the sound of On Ji sucking her teeth came in the communicator. _"Changing them is a bit inconvenient right now, since I have to reset the system. The system is still prototype, so it's a bit glitchy."_

"Awww", Sokka sulked.

"Arrow Boy_!"_ Katara suddenly exclaimed.

"What?" they all asked, even On Ji.

"_Arrow Boy",_ Katara said brightly. _"Codename for Aang. I mean, he does have an arrow on his hood, like his tattoo? Besides, I kinda like Arrow Boy. It sounds kinda cute."_

"_Arrow Boy it is",_ Toph guffawed.

"_As much as I love the fact that you kids are having fun bonding and all",_ Iroh spoke through the communicator. _"Your mark just drove passed you."_

Four heads hidden on two different spot whipped to the speeding trailer going down the road downhill.

"On it", the four superheroes said before they sprung into life.

Arrow Boy, the fastest, triggered his superspeed and the world slowed down around him. He could see the Painted Lady shot a burst of frost from her palms downward, forming ice slides below her feet that she rode; the Blind Bandit hopped a little and small retractable wheels on her boots jutted out, allowing her to move on the roller-skate, controlled by her magnetism; Wolfman aimed his futuristic looking blue short rifle and shot some kind of disk that sailed just a tad slower than Arrow Boy.

Arrow Boy ran ahead and plucked the disk off the air carefully and sped ahead to the trailer, latching onto the back of the container for support; he hoisted himself up, a small feat for his natural athleticism and superspeed, and he stopped at the head of the truck and planted the disk on it.

He then leaped ahead and ran a bit further, and stopped, facing the slowing truck; the disruptor disk worked wonder and, for that, Arrow Boy was grateful. He pulled out his twin batons, snapped them to expand them, and combined them by the handle to for his glider staff; a roughly 1.8 meters weapon with thickened part at the end.

The trailer screeched to stop, blazing headlights showering the boy in yellow and orange hooded garb. Big burly men leaped down from the truck, two of them, carrying baseball bats. "Hey, you! What's the matter with you?!"

The Painted Lady soared high, surrounded by pure white frost, leaping the full length of the trailer and landed behind the two men, bringing with her a blast of her chilling power; the two men were thrown to the sides, covered in thin frost.

The driver leaped down next, cocking a shotgun. The Blind Bandit landed on the trailer head, crashing the vehicle like her tiny self weighed a thousand pounds, sending shower of broken windshield glass everywhere, and leaped down to the ground with a sideway spin. She made a movement of grabbing the air, aimed perfectly at where the driver was standing and the shotgun moved by itself despite the driver's best attempt at controlling it, slamming its shaft on the driver three times and the fourth times knocked him out.

Wolfman came running next, heaving. He bent over and held her thighs for support. "Oh, man…" he heaved. "What I wouldn't give for a transport. A bike, bicycle… a skateboard! Anything!"

"_Good job, team",_ On Ji commended. _"Now go and check if the animals are okay."_

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Triple Threat Triad's Secret Warehouse; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 12:20 AM)_

Torcher ducked the swing of the triad's crowbar and leg swept the burly man to the ground; supporting himself with his hands, he raised his feet and kicked the triad on the face, using it as a stepping support to leap back to his feet.

Torrent sent blast after blast of water from her reserves in tubes running inside her uniform, herding the three triads close together; it seemed like the triad found her attack more annoying than harmful despite the angry red blisters they suffered on their faces.

Strongman ran towards them screaming, taking the three down with a single lariat.

"Freeze!" three more triads came from the warehouse, each was armed with semiautomatic rifle.

The three superheroes stopped, waiting for further development.

A short man of five-foot something, with spiky brown hair and well-trimmed full beard, resplendent in his suit, carrying a thin metallic suitcase, stepped out of the warehouse. Eli looked unhappy as he addressed the leader of the triads. "Perhaps another time", he said. "My employers will not be happy, but I'm sure they will reconsider another deal if you can prove yourselves capable of getting rid of these… pests."

"Well, that's rude", Strongman said as Eli walked away to the wharf; the triads aimed his gun at Strongman and he raised his hands a tad higher. "We gotta do something, bro", he whispered to Torcher.

"I'm thinking", Torcher mumbled back. Three guns were aimed at them… perhaps, if he could just send a fast enough fire arc, it would distract them. He just hoped Torrent and Strongman would escape into cover while he was doing it, which was unlikely—

The sound of the roaring wave was deafening, almost thunder-like; a giant wave washed the screaming triads, slamming them to the trees and walls of the warehouse.

Torrent slumped down to her knees from exhaustion; Strongman ran to her and checked on her. Despite the mask, he knew Korra was grinning.

"Torrent, huh?" Mako commented, inspecting the neat handiwork of Torrent.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Dragon Flats Borough – Warehouse 23; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 12:23 AM)_

A motorcycle roar echoed in and the headlight pierced the darkness of the empty abandoned warehouse. Bold as ever, Jet rode right to the middle of the warehouse and stopped. Propping the support leg down, he descended the bike and took off his helmet. His cellphone rang and he picked it up without looking for he knew it was the _private number_. "Alright, I'm here. Where are you, you son of a—"

With loud echo of a series of click, the many bright lamps in the warehouse came to life. Jet blinked several times, shielding his eyes from the sudden bright light. "I don't see you", Jet snarled, scanning around for the caller.

"_Get on your knees",_ the rough voice of the _private number_ commanded.

Jet spat on the ground. "You wish!"

"_If you don't want the personal data of each and every Freedom Fighter you have under you to reach every law enforcer department in the Republic, you _will_ get down on your knees",_ the private number threatened; when Jet still stubbornly stood, despite the pallor of his face and him gripping his fist tight, the private number roared. "_Now!"_

Slowly and reluctantly, Jet got down on one knee, then on the other one, holding his phone to his ear. "Done", he gritted his teeth.

"_Good", _private number said before the Blue Spirit leaped down from the beam above with his fist aimed at Jet's face.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Various Locations; Monday, Tuesday, 17 September, 12:25 AM)_

Four individuals found themselves in four different locations. The instructions were direct and to the point, leaving no room for questions despite their ever growing curiosity. _"You will know what to do",_ the voice behind the private number had said.

Taking in a deep breath, the four individuals took their step at approximately the same time.

Asami, after employing her stealth and free running skills, skills that she might or might not have learnt by herself without the knowledge of her father, was now standing in front of a broom shed on top of Master Piandao's martial art academy. She opened the door to the shed and, as per her instructions, she found a loose board on the interior wall which was a hidden panel concealing a fingerprint recognition pad. She pressed her thumb on it and a hidden elevator door, masquerading as a wall opened up for her.

Suki, parking her moped in front of the Jasmine Dragon, now closed, walked tentatively to the front door. She was mulling over in her head if she should knock. However, her instructions were to go to the backdoor where she would find a device hidden under a bush that framed the backdoor. The device that looked and had the shape and size of a small palm-sized flashlight was foreign to her and, she guessed, the rest of the world, but she trusted her instructions and pressed the round point of it at the door's keyhole. It clicked and the door was opened for her. Gulping slightly, taking out the metal fan she carried with her, tugged on the waist of her shorts, under her green tank top, the girl entered the dark deserted teashop silently, making her way to the kitchen where the meat locker was.

Haru found himself at Qing Yang District. He drove his green coupe to the front gate of the Deep Forest Industry compound and the security guards waved him in, opening the gate for him without checking him. He drove through the maze of buildings and wide roads, recalling the specific instructions he had been given, thinking he was lost by the time he made his fifth turn. However, as he ended up in a building marked Warehouse V, he sighed in relief. He was where he was supposed to be. Haru got down from his car but kept his engine running with his headlights pointing through the semi darkness at the metal door that slid open slowly. Behind the door, a boy in a wheelchair smiled at him; Haru gawked at him and said. "Teo?" right before a bunch of men in dark tactical suit, armed with batons jumped him.

And the girl with brown hair and brown eyes, looking more decent now in a comfy checkered shirt and jean shorts, eased her light blue VW Beetle into the driveway of the Kais' Residence. With a relaxed but determined look that the other three did not share, she got out of her car and walked to the front door. It was late, she knew, but she was expected. She knocked on the door and heard a dog barking from inside. Seconds later, Ozai opened the door.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Dragon Flats Borough – Warehouse 23; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 12:25 AM)_

Jet grunted as the Blue Spirit's fist connected with his gut; the latter's knee came next twice and Jet felt himself being thrown to the ground. Laughing like a madman, Jet clambered up to his feet with quite a struggle. Stretching his sore back, he let his power wash over him and heal his wounds. He spat a mouthful of blood on the ground to stall for time, scanning his surrounding while he could.

Phoenix stood with her arms crossed on her chest, looking ready to pounce at him; Acro and Stealth stood by her side. The four dark figures in hoods stood along. They circled him and the Blue Spirit.

"Had enough?" the Dark One spoke to the Blue Spirit with his rough voice.

The Blue Spirit turned to him and back to Jet, sending a graceful 720' taekwondo kick that brought Jet down once more before he stepped back and joined the circle.

Jet simply laughed, dripping fresh blood from his mouth.

"This is your first and last warning", the Dark One's voice echoed in the empty warehouse. "The Freedom Fighters will disperse and surrender themselves to the police!"

Jet laughed harder, picking himself up. "And how does that work exactly?" he sneered. "You clap and we come running? We are _Freedom_ Fighters, you dumbass!"

Jet raised his fist high and a couple dozens of Freedom Fighters flooded in, all armed with weapons. They surrounded the heroes. Smellerbee, a shaggy haired girl wielding a wicked looking kukri, and Longshot, a thin boy wearing a dark baseball cap and armed with a short bow, joined Jet in the circle; Smellerbee threw Jet his twin hook swords and Longshot drew his short bow, arrow ready.

"You didn't really think I came alone, did you?" Jet grinned.

The Dark One smirked, sending chills down Jet's spine.

"It's a trap!" Jet screamed but it was too late. The doors slammed close and trapped the Freedom Fighters in with the eight heroes.

The eight heroes went on the offensive with no hesitation.

Stealth slid to the side, moving in her flowing robe like a specter; Acro and Phoenix lunged ahead. Archer leaped backward and shot fast taser arrows at the incoming Fighters; Ghost leaped at the large Fighter that was about to grab Archer from behind. A meta among the Fighter, the one that turned himself into metal, roared and charged at the Dark One; the Dark One smirked and let Rock dashed forward, stopping the metal man on his track with his brute strength alone. The Blue Spirit unsheathed his dual sabers, now engaging Jet one on one.

The Fighters might outnumber the heroes, but they were lacking in training and skills. They dropped one by one at an alarming rate; in two minutes, most had fallen and only five, including Jet, Smellerbee, and Longshot remained.

Longshot dropped and rolled on the ground, evading the arrows shot at him by Archer; he stopped rolling and, lying on his back, shot a quick arrow at Archer who spun midair to evade his arrow. Longshot leaped to his feet, thinking there was no way Archer could shoot while midair due to the small window and the state of being midair, but he was wrong; Archer shot one arrow that hit Longshot in the chest before he landed. Longshot screamed in pain as the taser electrocuted him and knocked him out.

Smellerbee stood her ground mightily but Ghost was too much for her; her kukri dagger slashed the air violently but Ghost was unimaginably fast despite being twice bigger than her. Smellerbee heard the crackle first she felt the pain and went numb; Acro had snuck behind her and jabbed her quick on the back at least eight times. Ghost finished with a mighty kick that sent her flying to the ground, sliding on the floor as she landed roughly, and she bumped into Longshot lightly when she stopped, groaning in pain.

The Dark One, fighting barehanded, moved gracefully as he leaped and sidestepped Pipsqueak's spiked baseball bat and the Duke's more-annoying-than-harmful stick. Pipsqueak, being big and tall, had wide reach and powerful blow but slow, complimented by the Duke and his small frame, being a child that he was, and his apparent metahuman ability that allow him to jump nearly ten feet high.

The two Freedom Fighters did not notice that the Dark One was herding them towards Jet.

Jet slashed wide and linked his hooks together; he slashed with the elongated weapons but the Blue Spirit was fast. He clashed his blades on Jet's slashes and Phoenix, wanting to end the fight quickly, shot a concentrated ball of blue flame that hit joint of the hooks, knocking the one of the hook swords away.

Eyes widened at the intruder of the duel, Jet leaped backward, dropped and rolled quickly backward as Phoenix sent a couple of fast blasts of her blue flame. Grinning, Jet dashed forward at his new prey but the Blue Spirit interrupted his march. They clashed blades and Jet found himself being pushed back by the Blue Spirit.

Back to back with Pipsqueak and the Duke, the downed Longshot and the incapacitated Smellerbee at their feet, the Freedom Fighters found themselves caught in the tightening circle of the eight heroes.

Jet, having found his new prey, lunged at Phoenix. The Dark One pulled his gun out fast and shot him in the head. Jet was thrown down, falling on his back as his head whipped backward from the sheer force of the plasma. He lay there on the ground, dead with a burning hole between his eyes.

None reacted to his passing.

Jet gasped sharply, twitching violently and so hard that his muscles tightened, the veins on his head were showing, and his skin reddened. The hole between his eyes shone a peculiar green light and the wound healed itself. Groaning weakly, he rolled to his side, trying to get up but failed miserably. The healing process was too much for him.

"You have been warned", the Dark One said coldly, no more was his earlier smirk and all that was left on his lower face under the hood was icy cold cruelty. "No more mercy", the Dark One pulled his holstered retractable sword and switched it on; a jian blade shot out from the handle.

Pipsqueak growled and charged at him, and ended up suffering similar shot from the Dark One's plasma gun on his head. The Duke screamed and leaped high with bitter tears and fury in his eyes, slamming his stick down like a sword at the Dark One. The Dark One positioned himself carefully and stepped into the space between the Duke's arms, catching the child's throat as he landed and choking him.

"You brought this upon themselves", the Dark One said to Jet who looked at him with horror in his eyes.

He knew that the United Republic of Nations had the most active congregation of superheroes, and he knew that moving here would cause a confrontation. But, from his experience dealing with heroes all over the Earth Kingdom, superheroes adhered to the unwritten code of non-lethality of action.

He knew now that the Dark One was more a villain than he could ever be.

The Dark One brought the struggling Duke closer. He raised his sword and slit the Duke's throat.

The Duke stilled and, with his eyes half-lidded, slumped to his knees like a ragdoll as the Dark One let him go, and fell sideways.

Jet felt the constant hollow in his heart, the one that he did not know fueled his reckless and destructive lifestyle, widening and, from the abyss, hot fury and cold fear sprout out. "NOOOOOOOO!"

Smellerbee screamed with tears in her eyes.

Jet raked his head and face, screaming so loud his voice break.

Of the eight heroes, only the girls, Phoenix, Acro, and Stealth, reacted when the fallen Freedom Fighters, even the supposedly dead Pipsqueak and the Duke rattled violently and screamed along with Jet.

It took a moment for Jet to stop and passed out. Longshot, still unconscious, and Smellerbee, still crying bitterly, were the only ones not reacting to Jet's grief.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Triple Threat Triad's Secret Warehouse; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 12:45 AM)_

Strongman grabbed two triads by the heads and slammed them together. Torcher sent two blasts of flame that staggered the last triad; Torrent finished him off by moving a wave of water to sweep his feet and slamming it to his gut when he was downed.

"That wasn't so bad", Bolin commented with hands on his hips.

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

_(Republic City, Route 17; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 12:45 AM)_

"Nope, not bad at all", Wolfman smiled broadly beneath the mask that covered his lower face. "Aang, get out of there! And put on your mask!"

Blind Bandit smacked him on the arm. "Loudmouth! Maybe we should use codenames, I mean after the fuss we went through to come up with them?"

Arrow Boy, laughing while surrounded by some simians and a couple of koala bears inside the trailer, pulled his mask back to his face. "Alright, guys", he grinned wide under his mask. "The police will be here soon. Time to go back to the cage", some of the animals whined as if they understood him. "Come now", he said, putting the animals back to their cage with great care. The Painted Lady, giggling with a white chimp on her back and a few weeks old lion cub in her arms, helped Arrow Boy. They finished up quick and locked the door behind them, but not before the Painted Lady punched some jagged holes on it with her ice.

"This isn't bad at all", Wolfman said again, taking a deep breath of the night air.

"_I agree, Wolfman",_ Iroh's voice was strangely troubled. _"However, there seem to be a… slight complication. Return to base right away."_

"Yes, Boss", Wolfman replied. "Now… who's gonna give me a ride?"

"I guess that'd be me", Arrow Boy sighed, tapping his staff on the ground lightly, a pair of glider wings jutted out from the tips as the thickened parts of the staff expanded; the glider had blue wings and fitted with small but powerful jet engine on the tip of the front wings for balance and to help with maneuvering, and a bigger one in the spine of the lower wings for propulsion. "Again…"

"We should petition for a ride for me", Wolfman said, getting ready to climb on top of the glider as Arrow Boy prepared himself. "Sis, what are you doing?" he asked the Painted Lady incredulously.

The Painted Lady was shaking a can of spray paint, standing at the side of the trailer. Sokka would rather not know where Katara had hidden that can.

"Just a moment", the Painted Lady smirked. She wrote two words on the side of the trailer before they left.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Triple Threat Triad's Secret Warehouse; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 12:46 AM)_

"Team Avatar", Korra grinned at her handiwork on the side of the warehouse, right above where they had piled the beaten triad members. "I don't know why my cousin worries so much about me."

Bolin laughed nervously, so not wanting to be the one who broke the news to Katara that Korra was in on it all along.

"_Team, come in",_ Piandao spoke through the communicator. _"Something came up. Return immediately."_

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Qing Yang – Deep Forest Industry Complex; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 12:48 AM)_

The man in tactical suit screamed as the golden twenty feet tall astral projection swatted him away with its giant arm. The creature was tall and smooth, with bulges that looked like lean muscle and a flat face save for the nose and brow ridges, and it was made entirely of some sort of semi translucent golden energy.

Teo gulped as the tactical team were at lost at what to do. They carried only batons and restraining devices, no firearms as their objective was to subdue and not to hurt. "Hey, Boulder!" Teo shouted to his cellphone. "It's now or never!"

Eyes widened with horror (and sheer scientific excitement at the phenomenon), Teo could only wait as the astral giant approached him. A battle cry came from faraway, going louder as the Boulder ran towards them from god-knows-where, wearing his rubbery tights and as many sensors as Teo could put on him, charging towards the giant from behind it like a mad bull. As he reached the appropriate distance, which was too close for comfort, the Boulder threw his whole weight into a tackle, aiming at the giant's right ankle.

It was almost hard to believe, but the man's charge struck the astral giant's ankle hard like a cannonball. The Boulder rolled on the ground, hoping he had not died, and the giant grunted long with its echoey voice and fell almost in slow motion on his back. It stirred slightly and stopped moving, and after awhile it dispersed like smoke, leaving an unconscious Haru where it lay.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Dragon Flats Borough – Warehouse 23; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 01:13 AM)_

The sound of siren wailed, numerous police vehicles and ambulances flooded the area surrounding Warehouse 23, basking the area with their red and blue flashes. Chief Bei Fong dared not think of the paperwork she had to deal with later. Police officers in uniform and medics rounded up the Freedom Fighters, who were all groggy and looked dazed. Some resisted, as the Chief had expected. After all, most of the Freedom Fighters were delinquents and fugitives from the surrounding area, even from the Earth Kingdom, and they had criminal record. Some even had standing arrest warrant.

The metal man screamed loudly and broke free from the binding of his stretcher. A group of four Metal Team detached themselves from the retinue forming perimeter around the warehouse and worked fast to subdue the enraged metahuman with their metal cables.

Chief Being Fong turned and saw a stretcher passing her, carrying the unconscious Duke who had plastic mask pumping fresh oxygen to help him breathe. Chief Bei Fong gripped her fist and looked away.

Still inside the warehouse, the eight heroes conversed among themselves, most were recounting the exciting battle and their first team up. Acro tried to strike a conversation with the Blue Spirit but the latter stood like a statue and uttered no word in reply. Phoenix studied the Dark One's face but his hood offered little to show.

"I still don't know what your power is", Phoenix said.

The Dark One smirked his usual smirk. "How do you know my power isn't that I can bring people back to life?"

"You told us that you would have to take drastic measure", Phoenix said. "You said it would look like you killed a couple of the Freedom Fighters", she continued. "I would assume you have prepared your gun beforehand", she nudged her chin at the plasma gun on the Dark One's waist. "I would guess one lethal shot and a non-lethal one; you had to shoot Jet first with the lethal round to fool him, and the second shot would be the harmless one. That would explain why you didn't use your gun in a fight."

"Very good", the Dark One laughed, inclining his head at the girl. "And the second kill? That child?"

"A simple sleight of hand, perhaps?" Phoenix guessed. "And a sword especially prepared for this occasion?"

"Correct on both occasion", the Dark One showed the palm of the hand he had used to grab the Duke by the neck; Phoenix noticed that he was wearing a ring, simple silver band with a circle. "Hidden needle with hollow compartment enough for a drop or two of a very powerful neurotoxin developed by Varrick's Global. He owed me a favor, I saved his life", the Dark One smiled slyly. "And a sword with hollow blade. I use corn syrup."

Phoenix did not smile back. "And why do we keep this one around?" she asked, turning her gaze at Jet, still lying on the ground at their feet. The medics had tried to take him away but the Dark One prevented their effort. To Phoenix's surprise, Chief Bei Fong had arrived shortly after and told the medics to obey the Dark One.

"Go ahead", the Dark One tempted, eyes not leaving Phoenix's exposed lower face. "I know you want to. And you have the right to, so go ahead."

Phoenix kicked the Freedom Fighter on the head. Jet grunted and roused up; Phoenix's merciless stomping on his head gave him no chance to get his bearing.

"Stop!" Acro cried but Phoenix did not care; Stealth held Acro as the latter tried to stop Phoenix.

Phoenix kept stomping, ignoring the sickening feeling of Jet's skull under his boot.

The Blue Spirit held Phoenix's shoulders and gently held her back; gritting her teeth and growling, Phoenix stepped back, still held by the Blue Spirit. The Blue Spirit turned to the Dark One. The Dark One, despite the expressionless mask of the Blue Spirit, noticed the strong disapproval in his look.

"He heals", the Dark One said, almost cruelly.

Heaving, bleeding rather profusely, Jet tried to push himself up. His arms gave up once but the persisted and managed to slowly rise to his feet, standing awkwardly and eyes blurry and bloodshot. It would seem that the Dark One's earlier assumption was correct; Jet's rapid healing had a limit and it took more tolls on Jet's strength the more lethal the wound was. Just like how he was right that Jet had some sort of power over people's minds.

Incredulously, Jet grinned like a madman, eyes fixed on Phoenix. "Do your worst", he coughed. "I know who you are", he grinned at Phoenix. The Blue Spirit felt Phoenix flinched a step back.

Ghost came up from behind Jet and shot the back of his neck with a hypospray. Jet screamed five different swear words. He swung his fist to Ghost who ducked and slugged his jaw, bringing him down to his knees.

"Let me show you some cool tricks", the Dark One tapped his bracer. Jet suddenly tensed up and fell to the ground, squirming and screaming like worms after a splash of hot water. "Nanobots, attached to your spinal cord and nervous system. They will track your movement everywhere you go, which we will share with you, of course", the Dark One added to Chief Bei Fong who approached them. "Just the locator function."

"I take what I can get", Chief Bei Fong said, crossing her arms.

Unexpectedly, Phoenix broke away from the Blue Spirit and lashed out, throwing a globe of blue flame that was followed by extremely hot gout of blue flame. The Blue Spirit and Acro ran to her, grabbing her and pulling her back. They had never seen Azula lost control like this, and the lack of sound from her only made her even scarier.

"He heals", said the Dark One to the stunned Chief Bei Fong.

The eyes of Phoenix's elaborately engraved mask were thin slits, nearly invisible among the golden engraving, but what was visible of the rest of her face showed nothing but pure hatred. "He hurt someone I care about", Phoenix hissed.

The Dark One nudged his chin at Jet; Archer and Rock moved to him, grab one arm each, and pulled him to his feet.

"Do you want the pain to stop?" the Dark One asked the obvious; Jet stared at him defiantly, trying hard to hold down his scream. "I believe you know that should you sprout any nonsense…" he held the button on his bracer and Jet's pain intensified, so did his scream. "… I will make sure you wish you cannot heal. You _will_ beg me for death."

The Dark One released the button and the pain slowly subsided. Jet kept his mouth shut this time and only stared hatefully at the Dark One, the figure he had started to fear. At the Dark One's silent command, Archer and Rock dragged Jet away. Chief Bei Fong felt chill down her spine…

Torture, tagging people… she was not sure if she should get along with it.

Distracting herself from the headache, she nodded at the writing sprayed on the floor. "So, _Team Avatar. _That's what you call yourselves now?"

Acro, grinning widely, hid the spray can she had been holding behind her back.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Goldenbell – the Kais' Residence; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 02:32 AM)_

When Zuko carefully entered the house, he was surprised to see his father still up. The impassive man sat on the couch, posture straight like a statue, looking all kind of impressive despite wearing a red silk pajama, with Azula in a more comfy shorts and baggy T shirt, resting her head on her lap lazily, watching the late night news. Ozai turned to glance at Zuko and for a few seconds they did not speak. Ozai spoke first. "Your mother said something about emergency at the shelter?"

"Y-yeah", Zuko scratched his head, dropping his keys on the bowl sitting on a shoe cabinet next to the door. "A puppy couldn't sleep and kept crying. I treated him before and he trusts me, so only I can calm him down."

Ozai looked at him as if he was speaking in tongues. "You should find another job", he suggested, caressing Azula's shoulder softly, wordlessly telling her to get up. "A better job", Ozai added sharply, getting up and walking to the stairs, heading to his room.

Yawning, Azula stretched on the couch. "Puppy? Really?"

Avi, lying at the foot of the couch, raised his head slightly to look at Zuko and lay back down lazily.

"What? It's true", Zuko sat on the couch, grumbling. "He keeps crying whenever I tried to leave so I have to wait until he gets tired."

Azula got up and went to the kitchen. Zuko took out his wallet and cellphone from his pocket and put them on the coffee table. He stretched and yawned, and was about to change the channel on the TV when Azula came back and slapped his hand off the remote. Without looking, Azula gave her the cup of coco she brought with her.

It was Azula's favorite blue Woody Woodpecker mug, which slightly surprised Zuko, and the coco was disgusting, which made Zuko gagged.

"I made that", Azula protested.

Zuko coughed and put the mug on the table as far away from him as possible. "I know."

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Goldenbell – the Kais' Residence; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 03:31 AM)_

Zuko, sprawlingmessily on his bed, slept soundly. Avi opened his eyes but did not move when Azula snuck in silently. She tiptoed to the side of the bed and crouched down; Avi, lying behind her turned and nudged her butt with his snout but Azula ignored him.

Carefully, the sister tidied up her brother's limbs and covered him with his blanket. She picked up his phone that was sitting precariously at the edge of the bed and put it on his desk. Getting up, Azula looked into Zuko's sleeping face and sighed softly. She held her hair and bent down, and kissed his brother's scarred forehead gently.

"We're even", she whispered before she slipped out of the room.

Avi waited until Azula closed the door before he rested his head back down and closed his eyes. Drifting back to sleep almost immediately.


	8. Chapter 7 - Team Avatar

**Chapter 7 – Team Avatar**

Disclaimer: I own nothing

* * *

><p><em>(Republic City, Qing Yang – Deep Forest Industry Complex; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 05:28 AM)<em>

When Haru came to, the bright light and the white ceiling hurt his eyes. He turned to his side and saw Teo sitting in his wheelchair. Startled, Haru shot up immediately, suffering a pleasant head rush as the consequence.

"Slowly now", Teo looked up from his tablet and put a hand on Haru's shoulder. "Lie down. We're monitoring your vitals."

"What's going on?" Haru groaned, rubbing his forehead, looking at the ceiling.

"Your father is friends with our boss", Teo said, straightening the tangled wires and tubes that were attached to Haru's chest to monitor his vital. "We know why you moved here, Haru. We know about your power. We are here to teach you to control it", Teo smiled friendlily. "We will teach you to harness it, to use it for good."

Haru rubbed his eyes. "If you know my power, then you should know it's better off gone", he said quietly.

"Yeah… our boss wouldn't allow that", Teo sighed. "He has a unique way of seeing the world. His views are… well, controversial sometimes. But he is always proven right in the end."

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 07:12 AM)_

Korra yawned as she stepped out of the yellow van, followed by Bolin and Master Piandao. Mako and Asami jumped down from the front seat. Piandao led them towards the front door of the teashop. Despite the _Closed_ sign and the warm dim lighting inside, several individuals were already in there.

Iroh was behind the counter as usual, busy preparing tea and whisking batter for, Korra hoped, his award winning cinnamon pancake. Toph, the spiky-haired spunky kid, was sitting at the counter, on a high stool, listening to something on her iPod while facing the door, casting an unseeing glance. Sokka was somewhere in the corner, lying down on a booth, with Suki sitting across from him. Aang sat at one of the circular tables in the middle of the teashop, playing with what looked like a small white capuchin monkey that gave Korra quite a start, with a tired looking Katara putting her arms on the table and her head on it, looking at nothing in particular.

The only ones who looked like they had a semblance of life in them were Ty Lee, sitting next to Aang, playing with the capuchin with more fervor, and On Ji, sitting on a stool at the counter next to Toph, reading a comic book.

"That monkey looks endangered", Piandao sat down at the table next to Ty Lee.

Aang laughed nervously and rubbed his neck.

"He doesn't want to get back in cage", Ty Lee pouted. "It's better here than in the cage anyway. Aang will take good care of him, right Aang?"

"Uh… y-yeah", the boy grinned.

Piandao turned to Katara.

"We are just too tired to react", Katara groaned, burying her face on her folded arms. "We didn't even notice Aang smuggling the monkey in his shirt."

"I'll arrange something", Iroh arrived at their table, bearing a tray of tea and breakfast. Sokka, Suki, and Toph joined them at the large circular table, dubbed Main Table by the workers in the Jasmine Dragon. "So, are we all here?"

"All but one", Piandao scanned the table quickly. "The one who is responsible for this…"

"Complication?" Iroh suggested, sipping his hot tea.

"He's on his way", Ty Lee informed the table, one hand holding her cellphone, the other reaching out for a bagel.

"Who are we expecting?" Katara yawned and asked.

Ty Lee smirked. "Well, you can say that he's the… umm, sponsor for this event."

The bell above the front door rang and a Fire Nation boy stepped in.

**-F-I-R-E-**

**Heroes of the Republic City**

**-F-I-R-E-**

"Hello, everyone", the Fire Nation boy smiled quaintly, seating himself in the empty chair between Korra and Toph and tying his hair back. "I trust everyone is well", he said, slapping Sokka's hand as the latter was about to claim the last piece of bagel and took the tasty treat for himself.

"I should have known", Iroh sighed. "I'm getting old."

"It is true you never go anywhere without causing some sort of a scene", Piandao commented. "Eventually", he added. "And here I thought you came the Republic just to visit your old master."

"It's on the to-do list", the Fire Nation boy inclined his head a little at the swordsmaster, ripping his bagel in two. "Now", he began, spreading sweetened peanut butter on his bagel. "I believe Ty Lee here has informed you of the… trio? Phoenix, Acro, and Stealth?" he frowned a little, giving the half of bagel to the gray-eyed girl who giggled.

"They need a group name", Ty Lee took the bagel.

"And, along with them, of the Blue Spirit and the… hood people. Dark Hoods, let's call them that from now on", he took a bite of his bagel and stopped chewing once he noticed the whole table, minus Ty Lee and On Ji, were staring at him. "Oh, yeah, don't worry", he smiled. "The Dark Hoods are a little pet project of mine. I have the right to name them."

"Wait a minute…" Katara drawled, looking like he was thinking hard. "You're the CEO of the Deep Forest Industry, aren't you?"

"Yeah…" Suki began. "Yeah, I thought you look familiar."

Katara narrowed her eyes. "Sokka has a man-crush on you."

Sokka bristled. "I do _NOT_ have a man crush on him!" he nearly yelled at his little sister. "I just thought he has a great attitude towards science and technology, and I want to go work for him in his R&D once my work in the university is done, is all!"

"And, as I said before, I will gladly accept your application, Sokka Waters", the Fire Nation boy reached into his pocket and pulled out a business card to Sokka who beamed brightly as he accepted it. The Water Tribe boy went on showing it off around the table, too speechless to say anything but so visibly excited.

"Perhaps we should get back to business?" Mako suggested sharply.

"Yes, quite", the Fire Nation boy cleared his throat. "I propose an alliance", he said firmly. Turning to Iroh, he said. "Your team…" then to Piandao. "…your team…" then to Ty Lee. "…the girls, who Ty Lee represented and can get in touch with, and my team", he nodded at the last one. "It is my belief that an alliance of young superheroes is exactly what the Republic need to survive the coming storm. The Shadow Society is back."

Iroh and Piandao suddenly looked startled.

"They have already captured several key points and, sadly, Master Wojin", the Fire Nation boy said solemnly.

"_Shinobi_", Iroh gasped. "How?"

"Master Wojin visited me when he found out I was here", the Fire Nation boy resumed. "He has been keeping a weathered eye at the coastline of the Republic and he was the first to notice the presence of the Shadow Society; by that time, it was already too late."

The boy pulled out a device from his pocket, a small thin futuristic-looking box that, as soon as Suki got a better look at, bore similar design to the device she had used to unlock the back door of the teashop. The boy put it in the middle of the table and tapped it. A small holographic display emerged, hovering an inch above it, showing two portrait side by side; one of a one-eyed white-haired Fire Nation man with well-trimmed thick moustache that connected to his sideburns, and humorless face, and the other showed the Fireman.

"Colonel Ra'e Shimazu", the Fire Nation boy announced. "A colonel under Fire Nation Military and the leader of one of the more… well, darker side of Fire Nation Military; a division of black ops assassins, thought to be responsible for numerous assassination and kidnapping outside the border of Fire Nation, including Air Nations and Southern Water Tribe", he glanced carefully at Katara and Aang who tensed up suddenly. "He is also a high ranking member of the Shadow Society. Master Wojin believes that Shimazu, or Fireman, is the leader of Shadow Society chapter that has been established in the Republic."

Turning to Iroh, he resumed grimly. "Master Wojin told me that he wanted to do reconnaissance on Shimazu, and he disappeared soon after. I traced the Master's steps and found a part of the city where he was most likely captured. The Republic Report said it was vandalism went wrong, causing an explosion of the pipelines", he tapped the device again and the picture changed to a woman with a pair of glasses, blue eyes, pale skin, and dark hair, next to the picture of a figure wearing a hood and a metal mask with the face of a lynx. "But, then again, the head editor of the Republic Report is Lynx, another member of the Society."

"Wait, wait, wait! Back up here!' Bolin interrupted the Fire Nation boy. "Look, I'm still confused. I mean, one day Ty Lee contacted us and said something about the… girl heroes wanting us to join them, and that Master Piandao would contact us about forming a group of our own, which he did… and then there's Katara and her friends who were also the same. But, what does it have to do with the Fireman dude and this ninja lady? _And who is this guy?!"_

He pointed sharply at the Fire Nation boy.

The Fire Nation boy took another bite of his bagel. "Right", he cleared his throat, continuing as if he had not been interrupted. "I propose the formation of an alliance", he restated. "Between Master Piandao's team, Mr. Iroh's team, my team, and the trio", he inclined his head at Ty Lee. "Each of our team have different skills and abilities, and experience. We can complement each other—"

Mako cut in. "That sounds good and all", he said. "But, what about the trio and the hoods? We don't even know who they are."

"Ah, yes, that", the Fire Nation boy gulped from his glass of orange juice. "They have been in the business longer than any of you. They have made enemies and, quite frankly, they have little reasons to trust you with their identities as of yet. Also—", he raised a hand when Korra showed the sign of interrupting. "—the trio and my hoods are already in alliance, along with the Blue Spirit. Even so, they still do not know of each other's identities. Yes, we take this seriously."

The Fire Nation boy got up and straightened his shirt. "Take this offer", he suggested the table. "You will have the advantage of resources, equipment, and experienced superheroes as your mentors and teammates."

Ty Lee also got up and she joined the Fire Nation boy. Together, they exited the teashop, leaving the slightly stunned group.

"Well", Piandao decided to break the silence. "He has changed."

"That he has", Iroh concurred grimly.

"I accept", Piandao decided. "It is an offer as good as any, and you know that."

"True", Iroh sighed reluctantly. "I _was_ wondering about how I would train my team, considering how inexperienced they are all still."

"And we know how good my wayward student is as a mentor", Piandao picked up his teacup. "It is decided then."

Iroh nodded.

"Then, let it be known that today is the day Team Avatar is born", Piandao declared. On Ji was the only one who clapped her hands.

Then suddenly, Iroh chuckled. "Please don't tell me he sent Asami and Suki to rattle us, so we will have this meeting at this early hour after such lack of sleep."

Piandao burst out laughing. "It will not be above him to pull such an underhanded trick."

"And…speaking of which…" Suki grinned nervously, biting her lower lip, violet eyes darting between the two old masters.

"Yes", Iroh said tiredly, rubbing his sleepy eyes. "Suki and Asami will be included in our project in Aang and Korra's teams respectively."

"Yes!" Suki exclaimed, but then relented due to the heavy staring she received afterwards.

The bell rang once more and walked in the Kai siblings.

"A breakfast party and none of you invited me?" Azula said sharply.

Zuko just walked to the counter and helped himself to a pot of tea.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Qing Yang – Deep Forest Industry Complex; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 11:00 AM)_

Haru put down his cellphone and picked up his knife and fork; Teo halfheartedly ate his steak across from him. They were sitting in the messy room that was Teo's lab, at his desk. The latter had just briefed Haru of what had happened after Haru arrived at the compound and his power ran amok.

"You didn't hurt anyone", Teo said, finally giving up, pushing his plate away. "We were prepared."

"You had people attacked me so you can see my power firsthand?" Haru asked carefully, feeling rather irked.

Teo opened his drawer and picked up a large bag of Doritos. "Yeah, kinda", he opened the bag. "My boss wants to assemble a team of a sort. The guy who took you down, he was our first recruit."

"I don't know if I should hit you…?"

"Please don't?" Teo grinned. "I know that we may have crossed some lines", he said diplomatically. "But, trust me, no one was ever in danger."

The automated door of the lab clicked and slid open; the Fire Nation boy entered, bearing a tray of his lunch.

"Wait…" Haru stared at his face. "I know you…"

"And I you, Haru", he put down his tray; recognition dawned on Haru's face and he got up, smiling. "It has been awhile", he embraced the Earth Kingdom boy. "How's Tyro?"

"Same old", Haru chuckled.

"I visited Tyro's Hung Gar school and stayed as a live-in student for two weeks a few years ago", the Fire Nation boy sat down and answered Teo's unasked question. "I met Haru there and we trained together."

"Nice", Teo smiled.

"Boulder?" the Fire Nation boy asked.

"At work", Teo said, picking up a folder from the pile on his desk. "What we got so far", he said handing the folder to the boy.

The Fire Nation boy skimmed through the folder. "I want you test the baseline in every session. See if by routine workout, the baseline can change. Also, when you think the time is right, I want to see how he fares against… say, a speeding bullet fired at him."

"Ah…" Teo's face lit up. "A'ight, I'll devise a regimen."

Turning to Haru, the Fire Nation boy said. "Eat", he cut into his steak. "We'll talk later."

"About what?" Haru asked.

"About your new life."

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 12:19 PM)_

Azula walked out of the Teashop with Katara and Suki, slurping her iced coffee through the straw noisily, annoying Katara and Suki.

"A study club, you say?" Azula asked suspiciously.

"Yes, a study club", Katara lied, grinning weakly; Suki nudged her slightly, prompting her to add. "A martial art study club! W-with Master Piandao's collaborating with the school, you know? That's why he gathered us all here, to help with the… uh, club."

"And my uncle is sponsoring, you say?" Azula asked again.

"Yes", Suki helped. "Iroh said he will even get some of his colleagues to chip in."

"Oh, right, homecoming's soon!" Katara changed the subject quickly. "Aren't you guys excited?"

"Yeah!" Suki exclaimed. "Sokka's gonna attend."

Azula stopped at her track and turned to Katara with that look in her eyes that made Katara huff. "I am NOT asking your brother out!"

Azula looked visibly crestfallen. "If you and Zuzu would just fall in love and get married and have babies, then we can be real sisters."

"This comes from self-proclaimed best friend of Mai", Katara said dryly.

"Mai will survive", Azula nodded with conviction and slurped her coffee again.

They crossed the street and walked back to the Academy, walking past a bench on the front yard where On Ji and Asami were talking quite enthusiastically about something; On Ji had a sketchpad on her lap and she drew on it while talking.

"And what about young Miss Sato?" Azula asked as they entered the Academy. "Is she to be a part of the study club too?"

"Umm…" Katara quickly raked her tired sleep-deprived brain for ideas. "She, uh… she was there to represent her…"

"…dad's company!" Suki stepped in quick. "Another sponsor."

"Potential sponsor", Katara corrected; Suki scowled at her.

"Alright", Azula narrowed her eyes at the pair, clearly still suspicious.

In the meantime, in one of the classrooms, the newcomers were briefed regarding the homecoming activities. Aang and Toph looked worse for wear; even the loud Toph was awfully quiet since the morning. On Ji, sitting next to her, looked alert and awake. Aang wondered why.

Principal Umma finished with her explanation of the homecoming of the United Nations Academy. Mai, the scary girl, stood up next and began explaining dress code and other miscellaneous rules the newcomers ought to know.

When they were released for lunch, Aang dragged his feet to the cafeteria with the yawning Toph and On Ji who walked with a slight bounced.

"How are you not tired?" Toph demanded as they sat down at a table in the courtyard, basking in the warm sunny sky.

"Oh, I am tired", On Ji nodded, opening her bag of chips. "I just… uh, you know, don't show it. It's my meta power. I mimic people."

Toph snorted. "How is that a power?"

"How is that a power?" On Ji said, speaking with the Toph's _exact_ voice.

"Whoa!" Toph exclaimed while Aang gushed. "Cool!"

"Yeah, but nothing suited for combat", On Ji half-grumbled, half-shrugged. "My power also includes expression mimicry; I mean, I can actually make my face blush at will, or, like what I'm doing right now, make the circles around my eyes disappear."

Katara joined them soon after. Aang excitedly told her of On Ji's abilities.

"Nice", Katara smiled weakly, fighting a losing battle with her exhaustion.

On Ji sighed. "Iroh said the first couple of weeks will be some sort of a test run", she said. "To see if we can adjust our regular schedule with our 'extracurricular'", she made an air quote. "That's why he and Master Piandao each trained their own team. Mako and the others often do pro-meta at night anyway. Your two teams can sorta complement each other's timetable."

"Does anyone ever wonder how Ty Lee got to know the… trio girls?" Katara asked the table.

"Geez, I dunno", Toph jibed. "I mean, it's not like _you_ let anyone in on your little secret alliance."

Katara cringed.

"Not really a good start, Katara", Suki arrived at their table around that time.

"You're one to talk", Toph turned her hostility to her. "How exactly did you know where to find us?"

Suki narrowed her eyes at the blind girl but said nothing; she decided telling Toph that she received instructions from a series of miscall and text messages from a blocked number, and she was curious more than she was careful, would be just another bullet in Toph's arsenal.

"I'll get your armor done in a few days", On Ji got up and, despite her fresh looking face, yawned. "I'm going to the Teashop and nap in the HQ."

"Wait, what about the homecoming preparation?" Katara held her wrist. On Ji whined and said with a pout. "I'm on my period."

So, the next two hours saw On Ji working on the banner under Katara's stern supervision.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 05:23 PM)_

Yawning, Mako exited the teashop with Asami hugging his arm. "How are you not tired?" he asked the girl.

"I dunno? Maybe the coffee I had?" Asami smirked, pecking Mako on the cheek.

"I still don't think this is a good idea, Asami", Mako said as he opened the door of Asami's car for her. "It will be dangerous", he rounded the car and enter the front seat.

"Then why'd you do it?" Asami started her car and drove into the traffic.

"I…" Mako chose his words carefully. "Bolin and I had a rough childhood, we grew up in the street. We've… done stuff."

Asami had that solemn look in her eyes. "When I was a kid, my mom was killed", she glanced at Mako a little but returned her eyes to the road. "A… a group of triad metahumans broke into our house and… and they just killed her."

"Asami", Mako said quietly. "I am so sorry."

"It's okay", Asami smiled weakly. "I just… I want to understand. I'm not even sad or mad anymore; I just want to understand."

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Qing Yang – Deep Forest Industry Complex; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 05:30 PM)_

"He can be very persuasive", Haru nodded as the Boulder finished with his story of how the mysterious Fire Nation boy roped him into joining this project.

"The Boulder finds him quite fascinating, as well", the Boulder stroked his bearded chin, walking to the parking lot with Haru; he was volunteered to take Haru home. "He always seems to know what is going to happen next. And he said he knew your uncle and aunt? It is almost terrifying how he seems to know everyone in this city."

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Goldenbell – the Kais' Residence; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 05:30 PM)_

Alone inside the Lab, Ozai felt a hum coming out as he worked on a delicate device at his desk, peering through it with his high-tech goggle, currently set to magnify, with the phonograph playing an upbeat jazz music.

"Cousin?" Azula asked with that chilly tone that she so rarely directed at her father.

"Yes, cousin", Ozai replied, not taking his eyes off his work.

"We have an Earth Kingdom cousin", Azula rephrased.

"Your Uncle Iroh was quite a player when he was younger", Ozai finished up his work and took off his goggle. "I'm actually surprised we don't actually have any of his illegitimate children showing up on our doorsteps."

"She's about Zuko's age", Azula crossed her arms. "I can't believe Mom actually believes that."

"Your mother trusts in the best of people", Ozai got up and turned off the phonograph. "A weakness you must never indulge yourself in."

The door leading to the tunnel opened and Mai and Ty Lee walked around the same time the door leading to the elevator opened up and a girl with brown hair and eyes, clad in a homey T shirt with a cartoony cat on it, and a pair of trainers and slippers walked in, looking around the lab with awe.

"Whoa…" she gasped. "Cool… Hey, is that a plasma generator?"

"Yes and don't touch anything", Ozai growled, pointed at the tabletop computer in the middle of the room. The girl walked there, looking around still, and quickly tinkered with the tabletop as soon as she arrived. Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee moved to their arsenal to change; the three blast door at the side of the room which led to a room where the girls kept their uniform and equipment, and they also housed a simple bed and couch and computers, and acted as emergency panic room.

"Hmm… I have some ideas to upgrade your system", she said, checking on the system. "Okay", the girl tapped quickly and rapidly. "You are now officially connected to our server, and I upgraded your firewall with our own homemade version, and you will find that your system will now run at full capacity. You're welcome."

"I didn't ask you to do that!" Ozai exclaimed and almost shoved the much smaller girl away in his hurry to his computer. Growling, he tapped on the hologram keypad and checked his data and system; his amber eyes grew wider and wider, and then settled slowly at the range between grudging satisfaction and irk.

"Like I said, you're welcome~" the brown-haired girl singsonged.

Luckily, Phoenix, Acro, and Stealth joined them, ready in their uniform, but without their mask. Before any of them could say anything, the tunnel door whirred and slid open; the Dark One stepped in with his hood on.

"How is it that we still don't know who you are?" Azula asked sharply, aware of her mask gripped in her hand.

"All in good time", the Dark One moved to the side and another masked figure, the Blue Spirit, stepped in. They joined the table and the brown-haired girl accepted the Dark One's slight bow and a dark cellphone he gave her.

The Blue Spirit and Ozai stared at each other but neither said a word.

"Well, then", the Dark One began, rubbing his hands. "Now, about this Team Avatar business. I think it's time I reveal to you some of the more colorful members of our congregation", he waved his hand at the hologram display that showed the other members of Team Avatar in their full getup, each with the nametag of their hero codenames, plus two blank picture that only bore their codenames: _Kyoshi_ and _Lady_. "For now, we will keep our relationship with them on the professional level, so no secret identities for the time being."

Mai interjected. "I thought _we_ are Team Avatar", she said. "Your 'hoods' _and_ our team."

"Not quite", the Dark One smiled. "Four different teams form Team Avatar; our two teams, and their two teams."

"Are they reliable?" Ozai asked.

"They are inexperienced in this sort of work", the Dark One shrugged. "Not that it matters for now. They will mainly be the 'face' of Team Avatar; we are the 'talons'."

The Dark One ignored the Blue Spirit's sharply whipping his head towards his direction.

"They have potential but they need time", he continued. "My team and I have been at this for quite some time and we are able to do what needs to be done. From the way your girls carried themselves in the fight against the Freedom Fighters, they seem to possess the same quality. You trained them well."

Ozai's jaw hardened.

"Starting from tonight, we will begin using a hideout under Deep Forest Industry in Qing Yang District as our primary base, accessible through an isolated network of tunnel that is connected to yours", the Dark One informed. "Ms. Roberts here…" he gestured to the brown-haired girl. "…will be a liaison between our two teams; she will stay with you as your long-lost Cousin Song and help out at our new main base as well."

Azula raised a hand. "Who will be calling the shots here?"

The Dark One smirked. "As a show of good faith, _Dragon_, in the light of his seniority and vast experience in the business, will be mainly responsible for the Team. _Swordsman_ will be responsible for training."

Ozai nodded at the girls and they, understanding their orders, said nothing.

The Dark One bowed a little at the lot. "Thank you", he said sincerely. "I just want to stress one more time that the secrecy of your identities is of the utmost importance, even from the other members of Team Avatar."

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Qing Yang District – Secret Base Underneath Deep Forest Industry Compound; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 09:23 PM)_

"Oooh, this is so cool!" Bolin looked like a giddy fan girl. "I can't believe it! _Phoenix, Acro, and Stealth are really coming to join us!"_

"They're here", Iroh called, looking snug in his old Dragon uniform of dark-red armor and dark engraving on the trim that form artistic dragons; the others in the room was too polite to say anything about his bulgy belly. "Mask, everyone, mask", he said, putting on his ornate red helmet that bore short dragon horns, and his three-slits-for-the-eyes-and-fanged-mouth full-face mask.

Master Piandao, in his uniform of dark Eastern Fire Nation garb –a cassock-like one piece garb with frog fastening on the right upper chest- and a dark bandana, pulled up a scarf on his neck that he wore to cover his lower face; his old sword he held in his hand.

The rest of the team was busy with their disguise, putting on masks, with the exception of Katara who just tapped the seashell on her chest; only that she forgot to use her pinky and On Ji, wearing a communicator in her ear screamed as the device buzzed so loudly. "Pinky!" she yelled from the computer at the apologetic looking Katara.

The Painted Lady got her disguise up in time. The roar of engine echoed from behind the series of eight tunnels dotting the wall behind them. The false brick walls covering the middle three tunnels parted and the rest of Team Avatar entered, riding bikes and a SUV. Phoenix rode a rosewood-red bike with golden flame, much like her costume; Acro and Stealth, coming from the same tunnel, rode bikes with similar design, with differences in the front part and color theme, in which Acro rode a bike with wider frame, colored dark purple with darker purple lightning design, and Stealth rode a slim dark bike with red cloud.

Archer and Ghost came from the tunnel to the right, each riding a bike with rougher looking look, sharper edges, and looked like something that came out of the military catalogue; Rock drove a Humvee through the left tunnel, a beast of a machine which, like Archer's and Ghost's engines, were pitch black.

"We are missing two", Dragon stepped forward as the newcomers parked their vehicles and Song, who wore a think pink jacket over her earlier clothes, jumped down the Humvee, looking rattled.

"The Blue Spirit and our leader are behind us", Ghost informed Dragon, bowing slightly; a gesture of respect followed by Rock and Archer.

True, the Blue Spirit and the Dark One had stopped just as they were about to reach their new base; the Dark One had said through the commlink that they would come along soon.

At that moment though, the Dark One had his back slammed to the wall by the Blue Spirit who grabbed him by the collar of his armor with one hand, and his neck pinned to the wall by the Blue Spirit's other arm. "I… know… what I'm doing!" he heaved, pushing the Blue Spirit with his foot.

The masked vigilante staggered back and clashed fists with the hooded one. They exchanged blows. The Blue Spirit's wild swing, the Dark One evaded by ducking, letting it sail above his head; he took advantage of the momentum quickly and leaped at the Blue Spirit's slightly turned back, locking his neck with his arms in a sleeper's hold. The Blue Spirit, grabbing the arm that locked him, pressed his back to his captor's front with the intention to perform a reverse flip, a judo move in which he would get down on his knee to disrupt his captor's footing and slammed him over his shoulder.

The Dark One wrapped his right leg on the Blue Spirit's just as that thought played in the latter's mind. Sometimes, the Blue Spirit forgot just how _annoying_ fighting the Dark One could be.

The Dark One released his grip and pushed the Blue Spirit forward. The masked vigilante turned to him and he was heaving; the Dark One knew he was glaring behind his mask. "I assure you, Azula will be alright", he said with softer tone. "She will survive this, I swear. Even if we don't… even if none of us do, she _will_ survive this."

The Blue Spirit took a full ten seconds to stand straighter and relaxed his stance. The Dark One titled his head a little and eased his stance after. Sighing, he stepped forward but quickly leaned back before the Blue Spirit even finished raising his fist to deliver his punch. "Dude, come on", the Dark one said exasperatingly. "This is _me_ you try to punch", he sneered and turned back, and began walking to their bikes.

Two steps and he sighed, turned back, and said. "Alright, you get to punch me once—"

The Blue Spirit's fast fist connecting to the Dark One's jaw produced a dull thump that echoed slightly in the dark tunnel.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Qing Yang District – Secret Base Underneath Deep Forest Industry Compound; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 09:42 PM)_

Dragon, standing in the middle of the room in front of the full Team Avatar, took his time scanning the faces… well, _masks_ of his new team. He was a bit apprehensive when he entered this base for the first time; this base was similar to his and Piandao's bases, only bigger and without crates littering around. The command room was almost identical, with the rooms on the red bricked wall, carved into it, housing mannequins that were to remain empty, Dragon thought, until the Team could operate with full disclosure among each other. The computer panel was fitted with hologram screen and, according to On Ji, was light-years ahead of any technology Iroh possessed. And then there is the extra part of the base where a pretty homey living areas were located, complete with brick-walled living room and kitchen, fitted with comfy and new furniture –even the fridge was fully supplied-,and hallway with cave-like wall and automated doors leading to dozens of rooms.

But, what bothered Iroh the most was the fact that Team Avatar was standing there in front of him among their own… uh, _faction_. Phoenix, with her arms crossed on her chest, Acro, who looked around excitedly, and Stealth and her impenetrable dark mask stood at the center; the 'hoods' were next to them, looking at him impassively; the Blind Bandit and Arrow Boy at their side, with Wolfman who was still busy admiring the tech around them, and the Painted Lady, who stole glances at Phoenix and co.; Torcher, Torrent, and Strongman huddled together with their mentor, Swordsman, on the other side.

Dragon fought a strong urge to sigh.

"I'll get down to business", he turned a little to Song and On Ji who were manning the console.

The plain circle in the middle lit up and a hologram appeared, showing the profile of…

"P'Li", Dragon said. "An extremely dangerous metahuman with the power of combustion", and he added quickly as Strongman raised his hand. "She is able to send some sort of energy that superheats the air and causes spontaneous combustion, and she can aim it into a concentrated blast."

"That's scary", Blind Bandit commented with dripping sarcasm.

"The police are currently looking for her and we've got intel that she has been hiding in the Slums", which is a slang for Jawwa District where the Triads' influence was extremely strong. "Your mission: infiltrate the building where P'Li has been hiding…" another hologram screen showed up, displaying an abandoned apartment building with busted up windows. "…and apprehend her. Alive", he added sharply, turning to the black hoods specifically. "I have heard of the Black Riders and how they tamed crime in the Fire Nation."

An audible gasp came from Wolfman and Bolin; the latter pointed a shaky finger at the hoods and gushed. "You guys are _the_ Black Riders?"

Dragon continued as if he had not been interrupted. "Though I will not argue with the result of your work, I take issue with your methods."

The rest of the room, minus Piandao, turned to the Riders and were wondering what Dragon meant by that. The Black Riders, a group of Fire Nation mercenaries, were hailed and glorified by the populace of the Four Nations as vigilantes and the mere mention of their names struck fear in the heart of even the most hardened criminal. They were known for their black clothing and armor, and their black combat bikes.

A minute later, Dragon and Swordsman found themselves standing in the living room, away from the command center where they argued in whisper. In the command room, Team Avatar were preparing themselves to set out.

Wolfman made it difficult by openly admiring the Riders' bikes with childlike enthusiasm. "Can I touch it?" he pleaded to Ghost who sent him packing with her stare alone.

Nervously, the Painted Lady approached Phoenix who was busy checking the content of the bag she had brought with her. She gulped and walked up to her. "Hi", she greeted the vigilante in red. Phoenix turned a fraction and continued her work of sorting her gadgets in her bag. "H-hi…um…" Painted Lady tried again, forcing a smile and trying, oh, so hard to contain her joy of meeting her idol. "Hi, I'm Ka—", she stopped and cleared her throat. "I'm the… Painted Lady."

Phoenix turned to her this time, scanning her from head to toe, from her veiled hat to her deep blue dress.

"And I know who you are", the Painted Lady continued as she began to sweat. "You're Phoenix!"

"And you are severely underdress for this kind of work", Phoenix said, closing the zipper of her bag and putting it on the floor, near the console where On Ji and Song were working. "Unless… your meta power has something to do with invulnerability?" Phoenix guessed.

"Uh…no?"

"Rapid healing?"

"No. I-I… uh, I made ice."

"…Right", Phoenix said flatly and turned, walking to her bike without saying a word.

Katara wanted to facepalm but her hat made it difficult.

Each on a different corner somewhere, all ready to go, the Blue Spirit and Stealth were leaning on a wall, arms crossed, as they impatiently waited for the rest of the Team to get themselves ready. Their eyes darted to one another from time to time, but their masks, designed in such a way, made it impossible for them to notice each other's lingering stare.

Aang, patting Momo, the name he had given the white capuchin, and Appa on the head, reassured the two animals that the Team would come back before they noticed they were gone. Pabu, whom Bolin never leave home without, but was there because On Ji was 'babysitting him for Bolin' (the excuse On Ji gave her parents for her being out so late), stood on the bespectacled girl's head, chirping loudly as he watched his master and his master's friends walking to their vehicles.

Phoenix approached her bike, parked next to the Dark One's; the hooded one was there, leaning on his bike while tinkering with the device on his bracers.

"Why '_Avatar'_?" Phoenix asked, mimicking his gesture and leaned her butt on her bike, crossing her arms on her chest

The Dark One lowered his arms and put his hands back on his bike for more support. "The concept of 'Avatar' represents both the new and the old", he explained; Phoenix tried to see past the darkness his hood cast on his face. "An old soul in a new life bearing an old responsibility", he turned his gaze to the Team and Phoenix followed his gaze; to Stealth and Blue Spirit who stood like silent sentinels, to Ghost, Rock, and Archer who were trying hard to ignore Wolfman's annoying request to see their gears, to Acro and Arrow Boy who were busy playing with Appa and Momo before they leave, to the Blind Bandit who stood nearby with the Painted Lady, talking, to Torcher, Strongman, and Torrent who were doing last minute check on their gears, and to Song and On Ji, who were laughing while they typed on the computer, entertained by Pabu who stood on his front paws on the console.

"Old and new", Phoenix muttered.

"Old ideals, new heroes", he said, smiling. He ascended his bike and started the engine. "It won't work, by the way."

Phoenix, also ascending her bike, nearly balked. "So what is the big idea wasting so much time and resources forming this team?" she demanded.

"Not, not the Team", the Dark One laughed. "What you're trying to do", he clarified. "It won't work", he tapped his bracer once and a loud fritz emerged from Phoenix's bag, followed by the smell of burning metal and a trail of think smoke coiling up from it; Acro andArrow Boy, being the nearest to it, crept away from the bag warily. "Do you really think I would allow you to hack into our system? This early a chapter in our story?" he smirked.

"I'm impressed", Phoenix said with a neutral tone.

The Dark One started his bike, revved his engine loudly, drawing the attention of the entire room. He then spoke with a booming voice Azula did not expect from him. "Team Avatar!" he roared. "Let's roll!"

They cheered and got to their transport.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Jawwa District; Tuesday, 17 September 2013, 11:07 PM)_

P'Li, meditating in the empty decrepit room, dressed in a ragged and baggy hooded robe, tuned out the noise from the silent street outside, concentrating hard on the flame flickering on the tip of the wick of the single red candle in front of her, and on the Inner Fire.

She truly believed they were insulting her intelligence. As if no one could miss the loud whisper and heavy footsteps outside her door, Wolfman and Blind Bandit just had to fell through the door, with Arrow Boy and Torrent falling on top of them. The Painted Lady groaned, stomping angrily at the clumsiness of her teammates.

"_Alright, team", the Dark One had tried to brief the Team. "Listen up. P'Li is hiding in a room on the fourth floor, alone and—"_

"_Gotcha!" Wolfman rolled his shoulder. "I'll take point."_

"_You don't even have power", Blind Bandit sniped._

"_I don't need power to be super!"_

_The Team had shushed him for they were hiding in the shadows. _

"_Okay, this is silly", Torrent barked. "I'm going there and bring her down."_

"_Not without me, you're not! It's dangerous!" the Painted Lady ran after Torrent._

"_I'm not a kid! And I'm older than you!"_

"_No, wait, guys!" Torcher shouted after the two cousins, and Wolfman who ran after them, and Arrow Boy who looked at the rest of the team nervously before he decided to run after Painted Lady with the Blind Bandit following him. "We haven't planned out our move yet! Urgh!"_

"_Chill, bro", Strongman tried._

"_Aren't you going to stop them?" Acro asked, a bit annoyed by the Dark One's passivity._

"_No, I knew this is gonna happen", the Dark One said impassively. The Blue Spirit stalked off, not uttering a word. _

"_And you let them?!" Torcher snapped at him._

_Phoenix smirked cruelly. "Maybe this is a mistake, after all", she sneered and walked off somewhere, followed by Stealth and, after a slight hesitation, Acro._

Which bring us to the explosion at P'Li's room that blew out the window. The kids, taking refuge outside the room, in the hallway, screamed; the ice wall Painted Lady formed, barring the door, was blasted to smithereens. P'Li sighed, wondering if this was all the heroes could do; she did, however, thought that the Blue Spirit, leaping though the window and drop-kicking her on the back, was a good maneuver and she respected that.

Picking herself off the floor, P'Li turned to the masked vigilante who pulled out his saber. P'Li breathed in deeply and out, taking off her robe and throwing it aside. She was wearing her battle armor underneath; auburn tightfitting garb with dark red armor on her torso, shaped liked a corset with golden trim on the chest and belt, and a tasset and a pair of pauldrons, with baggy trousers tugged in her pair of Fire Nation's traditional pointy-tipped boots.

Down below, at the entrance of the building, Phoenix looked up just in time to see an explosion from inside the building sent the Blue Spirit flying out the window. Her heart skipped a beat since the Blue Spirit would be falling from the 4th floor but the masked vigilante's arm shot up to the building and a cord shot up and attached its end at the wall, allowing the Blue Spirit to swing back to the building and, by adjusting the length of the rope along the way, right back inside the room through the window.

This time, the second explosion that sent the Blue Spirit flying out the second time was so strong the vigilante could not do much to break his fall and P'Li jumped out afterwards. The Blue Spirit was slammed to the side of the building across the street and fell to the ground, landed on a pile of garbage. Phoenix and her two partners sprung to life and chased after P'Li who was making the run for it.

The Fire Nation fugitive suddenly leaped and twirled midair in a horizontal twirl and, as she faced Phoenix and the others, they could see her dark amber, almost red eyes, widened and Phoenix could faintly see a heat haze forming on her forehead and trailing itself fast towards them like an invisible arrow.

Phoenix barely had time to punch the strongest blue flame she could when a wall of ice shot up in front of them, intending to protect them; the collision of fire and ice, and the explosive beam that joined after, send Phoenix, Acro, and Stealth flying. Phoenix found the sensation of flying backward with little control over her body extremely foreign. Painted Lady landed next to her and helped her up, apologizing profusely.

"I am _so_ sorry!" Katara said with more than a hint of panic in her voice, utterly unhelpful in her helping Phoenix up to her feet because she was so worried, she did not put enough strength into her grip. "I thought you didn't— I mean, I was trying to help—"

"Then go after her!" Phoenix barked, wrenching her arm off Painted Lady's grip. "She's running away!"

"Right… right! Okay!" Painted Lady hipped a bit and formed her ice slide, coursing forward at her top speed.

Groaning, Phoenix got up. Begrudgingly, as she noticed how far P'Li had run off, she regulated her breath and mimicked Painted Lady's ice slide move, shooting up jets of blue flame from her feet and hands, levitating her a few inches up and propelling her forwards. She caught up with the Painted Lady who, after overcoming her shock, grinned widely.

Phoenix put more effort in her jets and left Painted Lady behind, sadly overheating the ground and making it difficult for Painted Lady to keep her ice solid. She yelped as her ice slide slid on the slippery road and she crashed to the ground. Phoenix did not even notice.

With a loud growl, Strongman and Rock emerged from the darkness from P'Li's sides, tackling her to the ground. Strongman got up first, more agile than his slightly stout figure suggested; he grabbed P'Li's on the collar and threw her to the side. P'Li hit a parked car and grunted as she fell to the ground, accompanied by the sound of the car alarm.

Strongman and Rock rushed towards her but P'Li shot a fast blast at them; Rock noticed the sneak attack in time and jump in front of Strongman with arms outstretched. The two heroes were blasted backward and hit the building behind them and lost consciousness from the impact. Rock too the brunt of the combustion and the front of his armor was blasted off, showing strange rocky skin underneath. Now, Phoenix knew why he was called Rock.

Phoenix stopped the jet, twirled to dissipate the leftover propulsion, and landed while sending her flame with several spin kicks. P'Li rolled forward to evade the first one, allowing the flame arc to hit the car, and evaded the remaining two expertly. Then, unexpectedly, she lunged forward like a mad wolf. Phoenix was ready, as always, and engaged her in close quarter.

P'Li sent two jabs that Phoenix evaded, held against an unexpectedly powerful straight from the smaller girl, kicked once to buy some time to get her bearing back, which Phoenix evaded by leaping backward slightly, and then she lunged again with her claw strike ready, her long pointy black nails scratch the air where Phoenix's face had been.

Phoenix had not expected P'Li to be an expert of melee combat of such extent, and she assumed her Chang Quan stance with more integrity. They clashed once more for a few blows, none scored any hits, if we don't count the glance hit Phoenix scored on P'Li's right shoulder; P'Li twitched her shoulder back, following the direction of the blow, and caught Phoenix arm, in a grip, and yanked hard. Phoenix simply obeyed the force and leaped along the direction, rolling forwards as she hit the ground. Acro materialized from behind P'Li and scored four… five… six hits by the sound of it.

P'Li grunted loudly and sent a spinning kick as she turned around; Acro was fast and ducked. P'Li looked down and shot a blast despite the close proximity. Ghost appeared out of nowhere, making herself visible as she flew with a punch that scored P'Li's jaw, messing with her aim. The blast hit the side of the building near them hurting no one.

A series of whirring sound in the air announced the presence of several throwing knives coursing through the dark, flying towards P'Li. The fugitive breathed in and aimed her blast at Acro and Ghost, who scattered quickly, but it was just a ruse as the invisible beam curved and hit the incoming knives midair, causing a loud explosion as the knives were fitted with explosives.

More knives flew from behind her; P'Li leaped away, and more knives flew towards her from different direction. Evading the knives, P'Li began entertaining the idea of multiple assailants hiding in the dark. However, she caught the shift in the shadow surrounding the dark street and alleys, and fired a quick blast there. Grunting, Stealth flew from the shadow with smoke trailing from her flowing robe, and collapsed.

Finally, Arrow Boy and the rest of his team caught up with them. Painted Lady quickly moved to Stealth to check how she was doing. Wolfman pulled out his rifle and, with Arrow Boy and Blind Bandit, formed a semi-circle around P'Li, along with Acro and Ghost. Phoenix, gripping her fist, moved to join them.

There was a strange sound of whipping, and Torcher and the Dark One were blasted out from a nearby alley by what appeared to be a giant fist made of water. The water fist dissolved its form and slithered back into the darkness. A strange thin woman with long unkempt hair that covered her face appeared out of it, wearing ragged clothing of thick dark jacket and trousers, barefooted, and, the strangest of all, had the sleeves of her jacket tied in front of her, showing that she was armless. In the place of her arms though, two thick tendrils of water shout out, like arms.

"Ming-Hua", P'Li smirked at the newcomer. "Took you long enough."

Before any of them could do anything, a large fire blast landed between them. Dragon and Swordsman jumped down from the top of the building and stood there in the middle of the ring of flame, back to back. Dragon stood with slightly bent knees, turning from P'Li to Ming-Hua, arms slightly spread at the side, ready to go either way. Swordsman breathed out calmly and raised his sheathed sword; he gripped the hilt of his sword, almost reverently, and pulled the blade out slowly.

With a single twitch, the two senior heroes dashed towards their enemies; Dragon gripped his fists and dashed toward Ming-Hua, and Swordman leaped towards P'Li.

Dragon roared and let out a beast-like roar that was engulfed by the fireball shooting out from his mouth; Swordsman ducked sideways a little to let the nearly invisible beam from P'Li's forehead coursed over his shoulder. Ming-Hua whipped her right water tendril and it extinguished Dragon's fire; Dragon twitched and pushed himself sideways with his foot and all his might, allowing P'Li's earlier misfired beam to hit Ming-Hua on the chest.

The explosion was powerful and it engulfed the both of them.

Both Ming-Hua and Dragon grunted when they, respectively, hit the building due to the sheer for of the explosion, and landed wrong on his side due to being rusty.

Dragon awkwardly rolled to his back with quite a struggle, like a turtle not comfortable with its own shell. Swordsman did not let up on his lightning fast slurry of sword strikes. P'Li could only evade and step backward, not being able to attack because Swordsman's attack left her no room to even flex a muscle. She just took the chance with a point-blank blast. Swordsman raised his sword defensively and caught the blast on the blade. From the explosion and the puff of thick smoke, Swordsman slid out, still on his feet that had his stance strong and rooted.

Dragon caught him as he came bumping his way.

As the smoke cleared, P'Li was no longer there. The two heroes turned to where Ming-Hua had been lying down and found that she was not there either.

**-E-A-R-T-H-**

_(Republic City, Route 12; Wednesday, 18 September 2013, 01:01 AM)_

The police armored van sped through the empty highway unimpeded. Visibly sitting on the front row were three SWAT members with full get up, armed with a semi each. On the back, sitting with the single prisoner, were a team of six, fingers on the triggers and wary eyes on the Freedom Fighter. Jet, wearing prisoner gray one-piece, was tied to a standing gurney from head to toe in addition to his straightjacket, and had his mouth gagged. He was heavily sedated via the gas mask he was wearing, his half-lidded eyes fighting the losing battle to stay awake.

Outside, a single dark bike sped through, catching up quickly with the van, carrying a male rider and a female passenger on the back, both were wearing the Black Riders hooded garb and armor. The female on the back had eyes as green as a pair of emerald, a small flock of hair escaping her hood, trailing down the left side of her face, and a green silk scarf tied around her waist; also, she was carrying a peculiar looking two-chambered crossbow strapped to her back, with the lower chamber visibly sporting a bigger bow.

The female stood up, balancing herself on the foot bars, leaning forward on her front to the rider's back for balance. She readied her crossbow and aimed it at the backdoor of the van, and she shot the thick long bolt that lodged itself on it as the hook mechanism sprung up, surprising the guards within. The bolt was tied to a cord that the woman hooked at the back of their bike. The rider accelerated and rode forwards until their bike aligned itself with the butt of the van. The woman, strapping her crossbow back, grabbed hold onto the side bar on the side of the van and hoisted herself up, climbing to the top of the van.

The rider skidded and turned, and began speeding at top speed to the opposite direction. The female Rider, standing on top of the van, took notice of the rope below. As the rider rode to the end of it, pulling the van door off its hinges, the bike was also pulled from behind, and, due to its lightweight frame, was yanked backward with the rider on it. The Black Rider let go and, just before he hit the ground, he accessed his metapower; the bike phased through his suddenly intangible form and bounced on the ground, sending sparks everywhere. The Rider landed rather roughly on his back and slid to stop, but was relatively unharmed.

The female riders, still on top of the van, pulled the pin of the flashbang grenade she had in her hand and threw it into the back of the van. The explosion caused screaming of the guards inside. Like a gymnast, the female Rider crouched and held onto the rim of the van roof, and rolled forward, landing inside the van feet first in a kick that scored a hit on a random guard, and dropped to the floor on her hands. Inside, she quickly dispatched the disoriented guards, throwing them off the van one by one, and leaped down herself afterwards.

The van did not stop. Jet, still barely conscious, saw the female Rider landed on the ground with a sure half-crouch. The female Rider rose slowly and watched the van course through the highway. A few meters ahead, Lynx stood in her full uniform, hood and mask up, and a katana strapped on her back; at her side was a tall muscular Earth Kingdom man with spiky white hair, wearing a leather jacket on top of his white shirt, with the sleeves cut off, showing his well-muscled, heavily tattooed arms, a pair of dirty jeans and combat boots, with spike piecing through his nose ridge and numerous spike piecing on his ears, and a look of hunger in his face.

The Earth Kingdom man, a Freedom Fighter, tapped the device on his arm and flexed his muscles; his entire skin turned metallic and silver. The metal man ran forward with a loud thud on each step, and rammed into the speeding van. The collision sent the van buckling up, butt soaring high and it landed with a loud crash top first on the ground.

The metal man stomped to the disoriented guards in the front seat and pulled one out, ready to do some nasty things to him. Lynx, however, pressed a button on her bracer and the metal man let out a silent scream suddenly, tensing up like he had electricity coursing through his entire system, dropping his prey. His power slowly faded and his scream, as his vocal cord tuned out its metallic form, emerged.

"Control yourself, knave", Lynx scolded with that cold lilt in her voice. She turned to the inside of the van where Jet, bleeding profusely on the ground, was staring at her with absolute pain in his eyes. "Don't worry, pretty boy", Lynx titled her head slightly. "I heard you heal."

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Qing Yang District – Secret Base Underneath Deep Forest Industry Compound; Wednesday, 18 September 2013, 01:56 AM)_

Dragon and Swordsman stepped into the command room where the Team was. As expected, the Team was among their own faction and at each other's throat.

"Why are always rushing ahead without thinking?!" Painted Lady pointed her finger like dagger at Phoenix. "You are infuriating! And you let Stealth just lie there, wounded!"

Stealth turned her head to Painted Lady slightly and, despite her mask, she was scowling. Acro seemed to notice as she inched away from her covertly.

"Says the one who was among the first who stormed off before we had a semblance of an attack plan", Phoenix said flatly. "Amateurs…" she added under her breath.

"I heard that!" Blind Bandit snapped.

Phoenix ignored her. "_You_ …" she turned her hostility at Painted Lady. "Your power probably makes you one of our heavy hitters, and the fact that your ice power can possibly neutralize P'Li's combustion; and what did you do? You _babied_ your teammates around like—"

"Excuse me!" Torcher interrupted rudely, crouching near Strongman who was sitting on On Ji's chair, shirt off but mask still on, being tended for his bruised ribs by Song and On Ji. "Teammates, you say? It implies that we are _a_ team. What kind of team are we, anyway? You guys can't even stick around long enough to plan our moves!"

"What moves?!"Wolfman shouted. "It's simple! We go in, we bag her! There are many of us and she is just one woman!"

"Yeah, you shut up!" Torcher turned on him. "You're the cause of everything that went wrong here tonight! You're the one who caused these idiots…" he pointed at the lot that comprised of Arrow Boy, Painted Lady, and Blind Bandit, standing near Wolfman; Korra was not included in Mako's accusing finger but she felt irked nonetheless. "… to storm into the building! And for what? Just to get yourself beat down in five seconds flat!"

"Hey! It was more than five seconds!" Torrent snapped heatedly.

"So what?! You still got knocked out cold!" Torcher lashed at her.

"It was her fault!" Torrent shot up, pointed at Blind Bandit who, inside the tightly-spaced building, had tried to use her cord and it accidentally snapped towards Torrent and hit her masked face hard, nearly breaking her nose and caused some bleeding, not to mention knocking her out.

"Okay, guys… guys, come on, stop it", Arrow Boy tried to mediate.

"And what about you guys?!" Torrent turned to the Black Riders, minus Archer, huddling together next to Phoenix trio, talking among themselves. "Where the hell were you?! Why did it take so long for you to come and help?! Strongman wouldn't have been wounded like that if you had showed up earlier!"

"Actually…" Strongman tried timidly.

"Enough", Dragon's voice was deep and tired, but it was enough to silence the room; he suddenly did not look so short anymore.

Dragon stepped into middle of the room, gesturing Team Avatar to stand together in front of him like they did before they set out. Swordsman nudged his chin at On Ji and the girl went to the console and tapped several keys, bringing a recording of the battle between Dragon and Swordsman duo vs P'Li and Ming-Hua. On Ji paused the recording at the part where Swordsman baited P'Li to fire a beam at him which he calculated would go to Dragon's back and Ming-Hua's front.

"Tell me", Dragon said. "How did I know that the combustion beam was coming at me without looking?"

"Sixth sense?" Acro tried. Wolfman was literally bouncing, making the noise of an excited child, who knows the answer to the teacher's question.

"I know, I know!" he exclaimed. "It's the warrior mind's eye, like when they have super sensitive sense of hearing! Only true masters have those!"

Dragon stared at the oblivious boy with a rare flash on anger with his eyes but Wolfman could not see his eyes due to his mask and remained ignorant.

"How in the world can I _hear_ heat energy?" Dragon snapped. "It's the commlink!"

On Ji typed on the computer again and the scene replayed, only now the screen turned into the brightly colored heat vision and accompanied by the recording of their comm in which Song was redirecting Dragon's step. _"A little to the left… a bit more… perfect! Hold… hold… NOW!"_ Song's voice exclaimed as a line of bright hot heat emerged from P'Li's head, prompting Swordsman, in the recording, and Dragon to launch themselves to the side and Ming-Hua was blasted off her feet.

Dragon gave Team Avatar a slow sweeping glance. "I commend the Black Riders", he nodded at the three Riders who nodded back, "Torcher and Strongman…" then at the two. "…who actually waited long enough to set up a communication. It enabled them to launch a counter-attack on Ming-Hua when we noticed her coming to assist P'Li."

The screen spilt and now showed the two points of attack where Rock, Ghost, and Strongman ambushed P'Li, only to be defeated, and The Dark One, Torcher, and Archer intercepted Ming-Hua, and it ended with Archer being blasted hard to a wall and lost consciousness, and the Dark One and Torcher pushed back.

"It would have gone much better if, for instance, the Blue Spirit had joined the Ming-Hua team, along with Wolfman and Blind Bandit with long-range support", his stare held a tad longer on the Blue Spirit. "Or if Phoenix, Painted Lady, and Torrent could work together with their full-scale elemental power to overwhelm P'Li, and have Acro, Arrow Boy, and Stealth provide distraction."

Arrow Boy and Acro hung their heads in shame, Torrent looked away uncomfortably.

"And yet, we have the most unprofessional break-in in history", Dragon spat; Wolfman and Arrow Boy cringed. "And two heroes' abilities cancelling each other out!" he snapped at Phoenix and Painted Lady, the latter shrunk.

Dragon screamed in frustration, fire spat out of his mouth; those who knew that a sweet old man was behind the mask cringed.

"You will all stay here and work out your differences", he declared gruffly. Dragon turned on his heel and walked back to the living area. Swordsman gave one last disappointed glance at Korra and followed suit. He gestured to On Ji and Song to follow and they obeyed.

The door to the living area whirred shut and Team Avatar breathed more easily.

Wolfman was the first to speak. "See what you did?" he aimed that at Phoenix. "You and your blue flame thingy!"

Phoenix titled her head, a dangerous smirk was on her lips.

"Stop it!" Strongman jumped in, defending Phoenix. "Look, you shouldn't have just followed someone into the battle without planning! And you didn't even get to fire a shot before you got brought down!"

"Oh, I'll fire a shot right now!" Wolfman pulled out his rifle.

"Enough!" Blind Bandit stomped the ground. "If you two dunderheads are quite finished—"

"Dunderheads?" Torrent snorted.

"You got something to say, snippy?!" Blind Bandit snapped at her.

"Oh, _I've_ got something to say", Torrent turned to her, cracking her fist. "If you and that weird whip of yours—"

"Aren't you going to stop this?" Torcher turned to the Dark One who was simply watching the whole giant mess; Torrent and Blind Bandit, with Arrow Boy trying and failing to mediate, Phoenix and Acro against Wolfman and his now sexist remark ("—should've let the vanguard position to us men!"), Strongman looking from one argument to another, even being dragged into it by Torrent ("And you! Why didn't you come with us in the first place?!"). Stealth and the Blue Spirit just looked at them, not saying a word.

"What is missing here?" the Dark One muttered, more to himself than to Torcher.

"What is wrong with you?" Torcher snapped. Growling, he stepped into the middle of the room and roared at the top of his lungs, shooting fire from his fists at the ground; that shut the room up.

"What is wrong with all of you?!" Torcher demanded. "This is our first day…" he sounded like he was about to break. "Our first day of doing something good, fighting for something bigger than any of us!"

Wolfman spoke up. "If you all had just followed my lead—"

"And then what?" Torcher snapped at him. "What? What's your plan, huh? You gonna stuffed us all, a dozen of us, into that room and hoped P'Li didn't notice us and blast us off?! Are you really that stupid?!"

"You _are_ quite stupid", Blind Bandit jibbed at Wolfman.

"And you!" Torcher snapped at her now. "What kind of superhero are you?! You go on and on about how you're gonna whoop butts. How are you going to do that when you can't even control you own weapon?!"

"Stop that!" Painted Lady stepped in. "Don't yell at her like that! It was an accident!"

"Are you serious right now?" Torcher now turned to her. "What the hell are you doing? She's not a kid! When she puts on her armor, she's a superhero! All of us are!" he gave a sweeping glare at the room. "All of us, the moment we put on our uniform, know of the risk involved and we choose to take it anyway. For the greater good", he growled at Painted Lady. "Your action, treating us, _any of us_, like we are made of glass, is insulting! We are heroes, dammit! We can handle a little booboo without you dropping everything you do and go mother hen on us!"

The exposed part of the Painted Lady's face went crimson fast and she tugged her hat lower a little.

Torcher then turned to Phoenix. "I expected you to be the last person to screw up."

"_I_ screwed up?" Phoenix asked lowly.

"Yes, _you _screwedup", Torcher pointed at her sharply. "You have more experience that us regarding teamwork. I would've expected you to be a team player."

"Stealth and Acro knew what to do—"

"We are not all Stealth and Acro!" Torcher snapped. "You three can fight like you read each other's mind; well, fine! But, you three are not the only ones in this team! And you actually disrupted her ice?" he pointed at the Painted Lady. "What the hell was that?!"

The Blue Spirit was already at the closed up tunnel door, pressing the locking panel button impatiently but the door would not open. Iroh had locked them there.

"Come back here!" Torcher yelled at him; the Blue Spirit turned to him but simply crossed his arms and leaned back on the wall, not taking a step.

"We need a leader", the Painted Lady said quietly.

"What?" Torcher sighed tiredly.

"We need a leader", the Painted Lady repeated with more force. She stepped forward and stood beside Torcher, looking at the team. "As much as I hate to admit it, Torcher is right, so is Dragon. We screwed up big tonight", she said. Turning to the Dark One, she said. "I'm sorry", she said. "You were right. We needed an attack plan. We should have waited a little longer."

The Dark One did not respond; the Painted Lady was not even sure he was at least looking at her.

"You two shouldn't have just stormed off like that", Torcher said to Torrent and Wolfman, but with kinder tone now. "We are a team. We should at least act like one."

"And… I…" the Painted Lady gulped, trying to drag the words out, wrestling it away with much difficulty from her pride. "I should have put more trust in my teammates", she said to Stealth and Phoenix. "I should have realized that when you didn't just drop the fight and rush to Stealth's side, it was because you trust that Stealth could handle it and the fight was more important."

Phoenix looked smug. Acro cleared her throat and nudged the fire thrower with her elbow. Phoenix uncrossed her arms and instinctively gripped her fingers on her hands, a habit of Azula when she was nervous. "And… I guess I should've been more considerate and pay more attention to my teammates."

Both Phoenix and Painted Lady turned to Blind Bandit who, being blind, was oblivious; Arrow Boy whispered to her. "They're looking at you."

"What for?" Blind Bandit growled.

Torcher and the Painted Lady's arms went to their waist; they looked like angry parents.

"Alright", Blind Bandit grumbled. "I'm sorry I hit you across the face with my whip."

"I'm right here", Torrent said from a different direction of Blind Bandit's eyes.

Strongman mimicked Arrow Boy's whisper to Torrent. "She's called _Blind_ Bandit. Take the hint."

"Right", Wolfman clasped his hands. "Now that we are all friendly again, what is this thing about leader?" he asked the room hopefully.

"You are not going to be our leader", Painted Lady barked at him.

"Wha— I used to be a leader back at Sou— I mean, where I came from!" Wolfman protested.

"You were a leader of a bunch of kids playing snowball fights!" Painted Lady jabbed again. "You are _not_ our leader! And… I… can't be our leader", she sighed. "I know that I shouldn't but…" she looked around her teammates' faces- _masks_, whatever!- and said. "I worry every time one of you takes a hit. I can't be a good leader like that", then she turned to Torrent. "Neither can you, cuz", she said. "You lack patience", she added; Torrent's shoulders fell. "Or you, sadly, Phoenix", Painted Lady said; Phoenix did not react because she silently agreed. "You, Acro, and Stealth are a tightly-knitted group and I appreciate that, we all do. We should all strive to be as effective a fighting group as the three of you. But, before you can lead us, you need to learn to let us in, let us be part of _your_ team", then she turned to Torcher. "I nominate you to be our leader."

"Wait, what?" Torcher balked. "I can't be the leader", he looked around the room, all, minus the Dark One, were looking at him. "Look, I'm not good with the planning and stuff. Besides, I'm still new to this thing. We need someone with experience and leadership skills, and, frankly, there is only one person in this room who fits the bill", he turned to the Dark One. "You should be leader."

The Dark One's lips moved as he muttered to himself, completely unaware of what was going on; Ghost nudged him and he snapped out of it. "Hmm? What? Oh, right, leader. Yeah… I can't be the leader."

"Why?" Torcher frowned under his mask.

"Because…" the Dark One started with a slight cheery note in his voice. "…I don't want to?"

On Wednesday, the 18th of September, year 2013, at 02:49 AM, the Dark One was elected as the leader of Team Avatar by majority vote. The first word he uttered in the presence of his team as team leader was. "Nuts!"

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Qing Yang District – Team Avatar's HQ; Wednesday, 18 September 2013, 02:55 AM)_

Most of the Team had left, each promising to meet up on Friday night for a sleepover at the HQ for the weekend training. It had been agreed that the Black Riders and Phoenix's team will assist in teamwork training due to their experience in the area, much to Dragon's chagrin. The old man was apprehensive about the Black Riders and for a good reason. However, it was a team decision and there was little he could do.

Phoenix stored her bag in the mannequin space, the one she picked for herself right in the middle of the row of twenty. Torcher's team had gone home and most of the Painted Lady's group had also gone. Wolfman was the only one remained and he was chatting excitedly with Swordsman. "I still can't believe you are the Swordsmaster!" Phoenix heard him exclaimed.

"Actually, I'm the Swordsman", Swordsman corrected the boy. "Swordsmaster's sidekick."

"Wait, Swordsmaster had a sidekick?"

Smirking, Phoenix went to join the Dark One at the spot where they parked their bikes; the rest of the Riders had gone off with the Blue Spirit, and Acro and Stealth had also gone home. The Dark One was leaning on his bike and, like she did before, Phoenix went to him and leaned on her bike, facing him.

"Well, boss", she teased the hooded one. "Congratulation."

"Hmm?" the Dark One did not seem to notice her at first. "Oh, yeah, err… sure. There goes my plan. You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

"I suppose. But, remember that I wasn't the one who nominated you. I voted for you, _yes_, but I didn't nominate you", Phoenix hummed. "You said something about wanting me and my team to join you and your team, and we would be some kind of a specialized part within Team Avatar where we would most probably do many morally dubious assignments."

"True", the Dark One nodded.

"And yet, you refuse to disclose your identity to me", Phoenix said, craning her neck down so she could get a better look at the face under the hood. She was unsuccessful and the darkness under the hood was impenetrable still. "You planned on bunching me and my team with them. Don't deny it."

"I won't deny it", the Dark One said, leaning closer. "I was hoping you could help weed out the good ones from them, recruit those who are worthy to join our 'dark side'."

"And you failed to mention that", Phoenix huffed.

"Did I really have to?" the Dark One smirked.

Phoenix smirked back. "Are you impressed?"

"Yes, I'm sure I am", the Dark One smiled and leaned closer to Phoenix. Gently, he pressed his lips to hers.


	9. Chapter 8 - Colors Through the Dark Eyes

**Chapter 8 – Colors Through the Dark Eyes**

Disclaimer: I own nothing

* * *

><p><em>(Republic City, Goldenbell – the Kais' Residence; Friday, 20 September 2013, 06:12 AM)<em>

Azula Kai purred slightly in her sleep. Her blanket she had kicked in her sleep. The early autumn of Republic City had brought the promised chilly morning and fluctuating temperature at night. It was pretty cold now and Azula was wearing her tank top and shorts. She curled into a tight ball and shivered.

The Fire Nation boy, lying on the other side of her bed, scooched closer to her and spooned her. He pulled the blanket up and covered the girl's shoulder. Azula woke up slowly and greatly appreciated the warmth. Smiling faintly, she pressed her back closer to the boy.

"Morning, sleepyhead", he whispered.

"Shh…" Azula hugged herself for more warmth in the gentle embrace of the boy.

"Would you be my date for the homecoming dance?" the boy asked with that hint of glee in his voice.

"I didn't know you were an alumnus", Azula purred.

"I'm not. But, I'm invited nonetheless", the boy breathed in the scent of her hair.

Azula rolled around and hugged his neck, head tucked under his chin. "I wanna sleep some more", she said. "Today is gonna be tiring."

"_Kyoshi_ and _Lady_ are joining us, finally", the Fire Nation boy pecked the top of her head.

"Two more amateurs", Azula sighed.

"They're improving", the boy said fairly. "It all goes downhill once Torrent and Wolfboy start following orders."

"Wolfman", Azula corrected.

"Are you sure?"

Azula chuckled and nuzzled deeper into his embrace.

"Sleep", the boy said.

Azula fell asleep in mere five seconds, safe and warm in arms of her beloved.

At 07:00 AM, her alarm clock rang. Azula woke up alone in her bed, hugging a pillow.

**-F-I-R-E-**

**Heroes of the Republic City**

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Central Plains District – Dragon Pearl Manor; Friday, 20 September 2013, 07:00 AM)_

The Fire Nation boy gasped sharply as he woke up from his sleep. His head hurts, as always, when he had the _dreams_. Groaning, he pinched the part between his eyes but he could not help but smile. He could still smell the sweet scent of her hair in his nose.

The Fire Nation boy refused to open his eyes.

He lay there for a couple more minutes, eyes closed, stealing some more moments free of those… _colors_. But, as it always would, the colors found a way inside his closed eyelids. He sighed deeply. _Break time's over_.

He leaped to his feet and stretched, yawning widely. Then he dropped on his front, just dropped with legs and torso straight like a plank. He hands shot out and held to the carpeted floor of his room before he hit the ground. He performed thirty intense and fast pushups and leaped to his feet as he finished, now with more color on the pale skin of his face.

The colors got much stronger too…

His room was large, with walls colored dark red with black rim, the color of his clan. His bad was a four-poster king size bed, fitted with pillowcases and bed sheet of red silk. At the foot of the bed was a table bearing a two-tiered pedestal; the first tier housed a green jade flute, and the lower tier, a black sword with a golden dragon engraving attached to it.

There was a set of couch and a half-wall partition in the middle that separated the two quarters of the room; the lounging space where the bed was, with the couch set and a TV, and the study space where his work desk and filled bookracks were.

At the side where his study was, a part of the floor tiles had been taken out and filled with thin gym mattresses. The two walls on that particular corner of the room were filled with numerous martial art weapons, real and wooden. The part next to the bed area was relatively empty, save for a glass cubicle that housed a luxurious looking bathtub. There was a door nearby, leading to his personal bathroom.

He went through that door, following a strand of soft blue hue. He took an extended time under the shower and, by the time he got out, slightly dripping and in a fresh T shirt and trainers, he looked more alert.

The colors also had more definition now, making it easier to tell them apart.

He turned on his TV and plopped down on his couch. There was a stack of folders on the coffee table demanding his attention. So, he put on a random _Tom and Jerry_ recording and began working, accompanied by the lull of the cartoon's music and occasional screaming of Tom in pain.

His cellphone rang and he picked it up without checking for the caller.

"Morning, Bob", the color told him who it was anyway…

"Hiya", Song greeted cheerfully from the other end. "Have you eaten breakfast yet?"

The boy groaned.

"Eat now!" Song commanded. "Gosh, you are like a child sometimes."

"Yes, mom", the boy yawned openly and exited the room.

"On Ji's done with Kyoshi and Lady's costumes", Song informed the boy as he descended the stairs leading to the kitchen.

"All good?" the boy asked, making a beeline to his fridge.

"They're trying it on now", Song said. "It took a lot of convincing but Suki finally gave in and agreed to use the instant disguise device, like the one we installed in the Painted Lady's costumes."

"Earth Kingdom can be a bit of a stickler when it comes to tradition", the boy snickered, drinking milk from the carton. "As long as she's okay with the weaponries we installed in her costumes."

Song gave a noncommittal grunt. "How are you doing?" she asked with much softer tone.

"I'm… fine", the boy sighed. "I'm going to the Teashop", he said. "I want something fried or toasted, but I'm too lazy to make any. Wanna come?"

"If I can bring On Ji", Song said. "We're planning to stop by there next anyway. We need to do a quick system checkup on Iroh's lair."

"See you there, Bob", the boy smirked. Song just hung up.

The boy chuckled as the faint plum-scented purple faded. He put his cellphone on the kitchen counter and got up to his room to get dressed. He came back down a few minutes later, dressed in his white long-sleeved T shirt and dark brown cargo trousers, and a comfy pair of sneakers.

He had no weapons with him today; the soft white ray told him he did not need any, nor should he bring one with him.

He took his phone from the kitchen and his car key from the bowl next to the front door. In his unbelievably large garage, about four times the size of regular ones, he kept two cars – a dark sedan and a SUV-, two bikes, and an antique gray Impala he was carsitting for an uncle of his.

He got into his sedan and drove out, heading not to the faint uneventful soft golden light, but to a warm embracing sapphire-blueish deep red tendril that would take him, he knew, to Goldenbell.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Goldenbell – Moonbay Park; Friday, 20 September 2013, 08:20 AM)_

Azula, sitting in her new 'usual' bench, the one overlooking the large crescent-shaped man-made lake that was the centerpiece of Moonbay Park, clad in her usual dark hoodie, with a pair of cargo shorts and red slippers, yawned and stretched her arms and legs. If her hood was on, she would have been easily mistaken as a boy from afar. Her phone beeped and she lazily fished it out of her jacket pocket.

Bumi sent her his daily morning words of 'wisdom': _"An apple a day keeps the doctor away. In some societies, apples are classified as a projectile weapon. Do the math."_

Azula cracked a small smile. She snapped the picture of the lake, with Avi running around it, and sent it to the old man.

She was still having a hard time noticing the boy's presence. She turned to him, finding him already sitting by her side, arms crossed on his chest and eyes closed, as if he was sleeping. "I had a weird dream", Azula started, almost sounding like she was complaining.

The Fire Nation boy just smiled and patted her head playfully. Avi came to them and dropped his Sokka-boomerang on Azula's lap and went to the boy, putting his head on the boy's knee and demanded a stroke on his head as a greeting. "Be my date for the homecoming?" he asked the girl.

Azula turned to him and frowned. "I'm not gonna go", she said. "I'm in the committee and responsible for the sound system setting. I trained some newbies to do my job for me and I wish for a relaxing weekend."

The boy chuckled. "Come with me anyway", he said. "Just one dance?"

"I don't dance", Azula replied rather gruffly. "I wanna go to my Uncle's teashop", she said suddenly. "Why do I suddenly have a craving for his cinnamon pancake?"

"Eww, cinnamon", the boy made a face. He got up and, together with Azula and Avi, he walked back to where he parked his car. Azula tried to send Avi home with her verbal command but the dog simply looked at her; she gave up eventually and they let Avi ride on the backseat.

On the road, Azula yawned again and squirmed as she tried to stretch her back.

"Why are you always tired when I see you?" the boy asked with an amused smile.

"I'm an insomniac", she replied.

The Fire Nation boy smiled and let the girl nap during the remainder of their journey to Tosako. As they arrived, the boy noticed the school getting busy across the street of the Teashop. He noticed some adults entering the school; alumni, he thought. He eased into a parking space and woke the girl up with a pat on her head.

"Don't stop", Azula said, enjoying her head being stroke.

"Avi will be jealous", the boy teased. Azula smirked weakly and forced herself awake.

They got down and Azula lazily latched onto the boy's arm; Avi padded close to her. They entered the store and were greeted by the usual scene of people enjoying late breakfast, Mako waiting on tables, and the unusual sight of Iroh, sitting on a stool at the counter, exercising with a squeeze spring while reading newspaper.

"Eww", Azula commented unkindly at Uncle Iroh who flexed his 'muscle' at her arrival.

"You must be hungry", Iroh laughed. "You're always mean when you're hungry", she pointed at the booth where Song and On Ji were sitting.

"Bobbie!" the Fire Nation boy exclaimed as they arrived at the table.

"Stop calling me that!" Song punched his arm as he settled next to her and Azula next to On Ji.

"Bobbie?" On Ji snickered.

"My full name is Song _Roberts_", Song said.

"Everything's done?" he asked Song. Iroh arrived with their order.

"Yup", Song said, sipping her coffee.

"What's done?" Azula asked.

"My medicine", the boy replied with a solemn tone.

"As in the medicine he prepared for this charity project of his", Song clarified, prompting Azula to kick the boy under the table.

"I didn't know you work for him", Azula commented, cutting her pancake.

"I discovered Song in Tianshui, attending med school at quite a young age. I like geniuses; my favorite kind of people", the boy said, suddenly raising his hand to call a waiter; the angry red color asked him to. "Hi… Jen", he read the waitress' nametag. "Can I have one Korkean chili to go. Ultra hot", he said with a serious tone at the last part, prompting a smile from the pleasant looking waitress with a twinkle in her amber eyes.

"It'll be waiting for you at the counter", the girl said with her smile.

"Korkean chili will melt your tongue", Song said chidingly after the waitress went away.

"Hmm?" the boy turned to her two seconds after. "Oh, no, I'm not gonna eat it. I need it for some other purposes."

What other purposes he meant, he did not have the chance to explain; his phone rang. "Excuse me", he smiled to the room and picked up his phone.

"_P'Li's gone over the border",_ Taka said curtly. _"We are ordered to hand over the case and her arrest to the Earth Kingdom."_

"It won't be a problem", the boy said patiently. "In a week or two, the World Council will reach the verdict to reestablish the International Pro-Heroes Law", he sat back and pulled out several bills of yuans and placed them on the table; the usually mellow moss-green was now pulsating angrily. "I'll ask Ghost to be on the lookout."

"_Okay",_ Taka sighed. _"Good luck, kiddo."_

The boy put his phone back in his pocket and turned to Song. "Bring this home for me?" he grinned, pointing at his untouched bacon grilled cheese sandwich.

"At least finish your coffee", Song sighed. "I thought you're supposed to be older than me. How come I'm the one taking care of you?"

"Because you're the best big sis ever", the boy smirked, kissing the brown-haired girl on the cheek with his still foamy mouth from gulping down his cappuccino. Laughing, he evaded Song's swinging fist and made his way to the counter where he picked up his takeout.

He got on his car and he could see the conversation Azula would have struck with the two girls in his mind; the colors allowed him to 'see' sometimes.

Azula would say. _"Is he a metahuman?"_ because she did not like to beat around the bush, not this early in the morning; also for the fact that only Song knew that she was Phoenix and she had to be careful with her wording. She would then eat her fries slowly, amber eyes darting from one prey— er, I mean, from one _person_ to another.

Song and On Ji would exchange glances; they would, as always, play it carefully. _"I dunno",_ On Ji would shrug. Song, the more timid one, would simply avoid saying anything.

Azula would give them a hard time, the boy thought as he let a small smile slip. He drove his car smoothly, allowing the angry moss-green to lead the way. There was a small cloudy gray on the back of his head. No doubt Lynx was being grilled by the Fireman still, and perhaps by the upper-ups in the Society.

"_All can I say is that he is an empath",_ he knew Lynx would say. _"He once described his power as '_perceiving colors'_ with all his senses. Think of it like synesthesia on the mental level. He said something about '_hearing'_ or '_tasting'_ colors." _

Truth is, he did not care if Lynx told them of his power. True, he could perceive the '_colors',_ the very fabric of time and space, and that they, in the place of his absent Fire Nation general of a father and dead mother, had been the ones who had raised him. The boy could speak, read and write at an exceptional age of two, and he breezed through school and university with such ease. He also completed his family's martial art training and advanced degree in Robotics Engineering. He was eight years old at the time.

The Fire Nation government had taken quite an interest in him; his father often bragging about his genius son encouraged that. Soon, his metagenetic ability was discovered and he was recruited to join a rather shady division in the Fire Nation Clandestine Operations Division.

He would rather not remember about his training, which started at his tender age of nine, and the things he had done in the name of his country. He was only grateful that the colors had kept him sane and eventually led him to the men and women who would later become his Black Riders.

Just like now, he let the colors lead him.

The angry moss-green whispered to him, telling him to bring the chili he had, still hot in the tube container. He entered the Deep Forest Industry R&D Department, nodding and smiling politely at the few employees who recognized him.

His phone beeped and he took it out; Zanna sent him a picture of her poking her tongue, holding his favorite almond cookie. She had taken a bite and added on the message: '_guess what i found in Shu Jing'._

Chuckling, he texted the girl back:_ 'Get me at least five boxes, pwease!'_

'_let it be known that the big boss man still has his sweet tooth.'_

'_I will take as 'yes' and no tacksiesbacksies.'_

When he arrived at the training ground, smiling at his phone, Teo felt the need to tease. "Girlfriend?"

"More like 'ex-fiancée'", the boy smiled mysteriously.

Teo blinked at him twice. "I swear, your life is a novel series", he said, swiveling back to his desk and computer.

"How did it go?" he asked.

Ahead of them, in the airstrip, the Boulder was running fast, breaking through brick wall after brick wall. Haru was standing at the side, watching.

Teo typed into his computer, bringing up some data. "We have established that his speed— err, I mean, his power doesn't come from his speed, not even hormone. You were right", Teo frowned at him.

"I usually am", the boy said, wincing at the screen, trying to read the small print. "Vitals?"

"Yep", Teo concurred. "We established some baseline. As long as he can achieve the appropriate heart rate and blood pressure, his muscles, bones, and skin will harden; theoretically, of course. We are still trying to find out where his limit is at, but the best so far, the hardness he achieved is comparable to stone. I'm planning to devise an experiment to see how strong he can get—"

"No need at this point", the boy said. "He retains his power as his vitals normalize at the baseline, no?"

"Yeah?" Teo drawled.

"I want you to compare it to…" the Fire Nation boy typed into Teo's computer and brought up a profile data of Bolin. "…this one's ability."

"Oh, right", Teo sat straighter. "Superhuman strength and endurance, resulting from above average bones and tissue density. Good point there."

"Remember…"

"Hush-hush, I know."

The Fire Nation boy looked up and glanced at Haru who was clapping at the Boulder who finished his course. "Any improvement?" he asked Teo.

"I still think it's mental", Teo said. "That's your area, not mine."

The boy sighed. "Work on synthesizing a chemical compound that will instantly up the Boulder's vitals to the baseline."

"I'll let Song know", Teo nodded. "You seem troubled."

"When have I never?" the boy smiled weakly and approached the Boulder and Haru with his chili. Teo typed into his computer quickly and followed suit, gesturing to his assistants to follow.

At the Fire Nation boy's explanation, the Boulder gawked. "Are you sure?" the big man sounded skeptical indeed.

"Yes", the Fire Nation boy said. "We have established that you don't need to build up momentum to trigger your power; it's just that running gets you into the state you need. Think about it: what if we can find a way for you to access your power without having to run first? Wouldn't that be great?"

True, the Boulder pondered. The reason he was so unsuccessful in pro-meta is because his need to run to access his power. The audience did not pay to watch a dude running around the ring.

So, with quite a conviction, he let himself be strapped in a chair. "You sure, bro?" Haru asked, wincing a bit as he secured the Boulder's arm with the leather cuff.

"Okay", the Boulder gulped. "Hit me."

One of Teo's assistant scooped a spoonful of the Korkean chili and splashed it on the Boulder's eyes. As the Boulder screamed and uttered a variety of swear words of several degrees of profanity, all but Haru dashed to Teo and his computer to observe any changes in his vital signs.

"By the way, you guys know that I'm not really an expert here, right?" the boy said; all eyes, even the Boulder's closed and teary ones turned to him. "I mean, I'm more into machines and stuff."

So, the colors are not always right.

There is something about the color, the boy had noticed from day one: nothing is impossible when it comes to what they would or would not tell him, and how it would work out. Especially when it comes to the possibility of the future.

People makes choices, just as the Universe makes its choices…

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Rookwood– Republic Report; Friday, 20 September 2013, 01:00 PM)_

Lynx cut into her steak with without taking her blue eyes off the Colonel. They had her big glass desk between them and her loaded SIG in her opened drawer –she had opened it and took out a packet of ketchup for show-, but Lynx would be crazy if she let her guard down just for a minute in the presence of the Colonel.

After all, Colonel Shimazu, despite being in his civilian clothes, like Lynx was since the Colonel had dropped in when she was at work, sat cross-legged on his chair, exposing his large caliber magnum revolver holstered on his thigh. Lynx sometimes wondered _how_ in the name of hell Shimazu could walk around town with a small arsenal and not being found out simply because he wore a trench coat.

Lynz chewed her meal slowly; Shimazu, eating a burger, looked right at home.

"I've told you all I know", Lynx dabbed the corner of her mouth and took a sip of her iced coco. "He might very well be the most powerful empath we will ever encounter."

"Because of how strong he is", Shimazu surmised.

"No", Lynx sighed, readjusting her glasses. "I've told you. His power is simply the connection he has to the… the _colors_. And those _colors_… they come from _everything_. I mean, you have a color, so do I; and he could communicate with our colors and find out what we have in our mind, for example."

Shimazu sat straighter, frowning.

"But, it's not all", Lynx pressed a button on her desk phone. "Inanimate, even abstract, constructs also have colors. So, for example, he could tap into the _color_ of my steak knife and find out that I have a nasty lunch today."

There was a knock on the door and Eli's head peeked into the room; he had breadcrumbs on his beard and a paper napkin tucked in his collar as a bib. Lynx pushed her plate away and Eli nodded before closing the door.

"So…?" Shimazu drawled.

"So, imagine if he communicates with the color that represents, say… the future", Lynx said.

"I'm sensing a 'but' here", Shimazu bit into his burger.

"Well", Lynx leaned back on her chair; Eli came back this time, no longer with the bib, and he cleared away her lunch before he got out. "His power is… uh, I wouldn't say unstable. More like unpredictable. The way he speaks of his power… the way he describe them, it's almost like the colors are _alive_", Lynx scratched her temple, frowning. "Almost like the colors are actually entities that inhabits the mental realm, perhaps?"

Shimazu did not realize he had stopped chewing. He snorted a bit and resumed his eating.

"Or it's just that every thing in this world transmit this… signal or something and he can receive that signal", Lynx tried another theory. "Still doesn't explain how the _future_ or the _past_ can transmit a signal though, or how the colors could sometimes _refuse_ to tell him things."

"Interesting", Shimazu nodded. "I will consult our empaths."

"You do that", Lynx smirked.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Goldenbell – the Kais' Residence; Friday, 20 September 2013, 01:20 PM)_

Katara would never _ever_ get used to the view of Azula's super girly room. It always cracked her up. At least, on her twelfth birthday, Azula managed to convince her parents to repaint her pink walls with something less girly; they settled with soft blue and red. The artistically-inclined Ty Lee had also painted the wall with some stars and moons, and, as per Azula's request, a small UFO on the wall above her computer.

Sitting on the floor at the side of Azula's bed, Katara read the report from the homecoming committee regarding the preparation with a plate of half-eaten Mrs. Kai's world's famous hearty French-toast-grilled-cheese-and-ham sandwich (where Ursa would make two grilled cheese sandwich with French toast use them as layers to make a ham sandwich). Eating that kind of food growing up, Katara seriously could not comprehend how Azula was not taller, or wider.

The petite girl was lying on her front, with her feet rubbing each other, and she was happily playing a PSP while listening to her IPod. Her phone beeped and Azula picked it up, reading the message. "What does a vegetarian zombie eat?" she asked Katara unexpectedly.

"Huh…?"

"Oh, I get", Azula typed into her phone as she said. "Grains."

"Who's that?" Katara frowned.

"Some crazy old man I met in the hospital", Azula shrugged and sat up, joining Katara. "Have I ever told you that you grew up so wonderfully well?"

"Wha?" Katara nearly choked on her sandwich.

"Which is very fortunate", Azula's sly amber eyes dropped to the Water Tribe girl's chest, protruding quite generously under her blue T shirt. "Zuzu's a boobs guy. I think. I often catch him staring at random girl's breasts."

"Okay… this is _not_ a healthy lunch talk", Katara put down her sandwich. "And I thought Zuko's more of an ass guy", Katara thought aloud.

"Well…" Azula's eyes dropped lower to the other girl's hip.

"Azula!" Katara chided. "Mai's my friend too. You know that, right?"

Azula pouted, stretching her legs and picking up the TV remote. She changed the channel to the first cartoon she found.

"You should learn to take it easy", she said. "Someone with your bountiful assets—"

Katara groaned. "Don't call my assets bountiful", she shivered, eyes following Azula who walked to her vanity and sat there, undoing her ponytail. "And what about you?"

Azula gave herself a quick lookover in the mirror. "Compared to you, I'm flat and boyish", she said.

"You are _not_", Katara argued. "And that's not what I meant", she got up and walked up behind the Fire Nation girl. "Don't talk about yourself like that. You are very beautiful", she picked up a hairbrush and gently brushed Azula's raven hair. "And how can u call yourself flat?" her blue eyes wandered to Azula's reflection on the mirror, to the swell under her red tank top that was just _right_ in terms of size. "You know that there are boys who have crush on you, right?"

Azula smiled fondly as she remembered the kiss the Dark One stole from Phoenix.

"Those boys must be crazy", she snorted.

"Well, you're crazy too", Katara thought aloud. "So, why not?"

Azula shrugged, letting Katara tie her hair in her usual ponytail, leaving the two flocks that veiled the side of her hair. "What about that Haru guy?"

"He's not bad looking", Katara giggled. "The long hair is a bit weird though. But, he's a sweet guy. He'd make a good match for you."

Azula made a face. "I meant for you", she said. "For the homecoming dance."

"Oh…" Katara sat down at the vanity as Azula got up and they switched place. "I haven't thought of that", she said as Azula undid her braid. "I've been so busy…" true, with the preparation for homecoming, the superhero training under the Dark One, and her chores at home, Katara had not thought about who she would attend homecoming with. Not to mention that no one had asked her.

"I don't wanna end up asking a guy out", Katara griped.

"I can recommend someone for you", Azula perked up.

"I am not going to the dance with Lu Ten!" Katara snapped. Azula sulked.

"_We interrupt the broadcast for this emergency news",_ the music from _Tom and Jerry_ on TV suddenly changed; Azula and Katara turned to it. _"The remnants of the Freedom Fighters are sighted at Rendao. Citizens who live in the area or the surrounding are advised to stay indoors."_

"That's not far from here", Azula said, tying Katara's hair into a ponytail like hers, minus the twin flocks.

"Sokka is still with Avi in the park", Katara chewed her lips, getting antsy. "Maybe I should get him. You know how he likes to wander off with Avi to town."

"Good idea", Azula nodded, then she suddenly gripped her stomach. "Oww, must be bad cheese. Bathroom!" she bolted out of the room.

Katara waited until she heard the bathroom door being closed before she darted out of the room. Azula, with her ear pressed on the bathroom door, heard Katara's footsteps padding away in a hurry and quietly exited the room and tiptoed to the stairs. She heard Katara muttering something to Ozai in the living room and waited for the sound of the front door before she raced down to the basement, followed by Ozai's frown.

Ozai watched the two girls' departure, knowing full well of Katara's Painted Lady thing, and, with a shrug, decided to go back to his newspapers.

Outside the Kais' house, Katara noticed Carrie still in the driveway, which means Sokka was still in the park playing with Avi. Sighing, she entered Carrie's backseat and extracted the Painted Lady's costumes from her backpack. Times like this, she was grateful her outfit did not have metal plates like Toph's or Suki's, and could easily be hidden in her backpack. Even her hat was portable, as it was segmented and could be folded like a folding fan. It was big so she did not carry it in her bag although she kept one in Sokka's car.

Strugglingly, she kicked off her jeans, nearly toppling over off the seat; panting, she tapped the small seashell tied around a chain that she wore as a necklace, along with her chocker; her communicator that On Ji designed for her.

"Sokka, can you hear me?" Katara pulled her shirt over her head. "Sokka?"

"_Katara_?" Sokka's voice came out from her seashell. _"Is that you?"_

"Do you hear the news?" she asked immediately, struggling to put on the Painted Lady's baggy trousers. "Freedom Fighters at Rendao, now!"

"Okay", Sokka replied. "I'll get my gears."

"I'll go ahead", Katara said, tapping her communicator to turn it off. She put on the rest of her costume as quickly as she could and ignored the slight vibration she felt from the seashell. She was not in the mood for Sokka's protective-big-brother antics. Then, as she tapped the seashell brooch on the Painted Lady's costume, painting her skin with the distinctive markings, she realized that she was still in the car on the Kais' driveway and could not get out without risking being seen by the Kais or any other residents of Goldenbell who just happened to look out their window.

Katara facepalmed.

She tapped her seashell necklace and said begrudgingly to Sokka. "Hurry. I need you to drive me."

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Rendao – River Street; Friday, 20 September 2013, 01:47 PM)_

The group of ten Freedom Fighters wrecked the now empty street, smashing abandoned cars with bats. One of them, a girl with a Mohawk and tattoos, clad in a punk rock black and leather, gulped a few mouthful of booze she had in her hand and breathed fire at a nearby car.

A stream of water splashed the burning car, extinguishing the flame. Torrent jumped into the scene, controlling the water with her metapower and slammed the watery mass at the fire-breathing lady.

A big burly man roared and tried to hit Torrent from behind with his large fist; Torrent ducked, propped herself on her hands, and delivered a powerful kick with both her feet. A yellow and orange flash blurred past the man; Arrow Boy tripped the staggering man behind his knees.

"Nice job, kid", Torrent grinned at Arrow Boy who doubled back and stopped at the downed man. Despite the mask, Torrent noticed his grin.

A rain of icicles stopped the rest of the Fighters who came rushing at the two heroes. Painted Lady arrived in her ice slide. "Am I late?" she greeted her fellow heroes.

"Not later than I", Phoenix exclaimed from the top of the nearby building. She leaped down and joined the others.

The Fighters regrouped and formed a semi-circle around the heroes.

"This will be fun", Phoenix commented with dripping venom in her voice. She stood in a relaxed stance, unlike the other three who had fallen into a fighting stance.

Out of nowhere, the Blue Spirit appeared swinging down on the cord attached to his left bracers. He landed without a noise behind the Fighters and, without further ado, began dispatching the delinquents. He dropped the first two with a quick hand chop on their shoulder, shocking their nerves. The rest of the Fighters overcame their surprise quickly and began assaulting him.

The Blue Spirit moved into the one on his left and his swinging crowbar with his left arm raised, deflecting the blow on the attacker's arm; he awarded the crowbar-wielding man with an open-handed blow under his chin and a plain but powerful front kick, sending him crashing back on the two behind him.

With the same leg, the Blue Spirit kicked back at the coming Fighters behind him, scoring a hit on the gut. He then swung the leg back and up, using the momentum to flipped back and landed a swinging vertical kick with his other foot on the bent Fighter's head as he spun. The last two Fighters rushed the Blue Spirit but he dashed and rolled away.

Out of nowhere, the Blue Spirit went on the offensive, leaping on the nearest Freedom Fighter and kneed him on the face. The last Fighter, armed with a jackknife, tried to stab the vigilante on the gut but the Blue Spirit caught the wrist and twisted it, disarming the Fighter. He then rained numerous fast blows on the Freedom Fighter's face and ended it with a spinning taekwondo kick.

The heroes were stunned at the speed the Blue Spirit did his… well, _their_ job. It should be noted that the Dark One had been training the Team in coordination and teamwork though simulations every night after their botched first mission. The Blue Spirit had attended none of those sessions.

"Well, this blows", Phoenix commented dryly as the Blue Spirit dashed to the nearest alley and disappeared.

Rushed footsteps and heavy panting announced Wolfman's arrival. "Katara! Why didn't you wait for me?!"

"Oh, hi, Sokka", Arrow Boy waved cheerfully at him.

Torrent sighed and rubbed the forehead of her mask.

The Painted Lady turned to Phoenix and grinned awkwardly. Phoenix turned to the two boys with hands on her hips. "Amateurs!"

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden – Shinrin Diner; Friday, 20 September 2013, 02:55 PM)_

The Fire Nation boy drew in a sharp breath as he woke up from his nap; Lynx stared at her through her glasses that did not diminish the sharpness of those blue eyes.

"Don't judge", the Fire Nation boy yawned and raised her arms and stretched. "I didn't sleep well last night."

"You never do", Lynx stirred her coffee. "Are you not worried?"

"About?" the boy smiled lazily at Lynx with his half-lidded eyes.

"Shimazu", Lynx said impatiently.

"I can handle him", the boy said flippantly, putting his elbows on the table and tented his fingers, resting his chin on his hands. "You are beautiful when you are trying to act human."

"And you're a moron", Lynx sipped her coffee. "Like always."

The boy smiled. He really did like the faint glow on Lynx dusty cloudy gray when she acted out of kindness.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Qing Yang District – Team Avatar HQ; Friday, 20 September 2013, 04:16 PM)_

His good mood held still as he supervised the training session in the HQ. One level under the command room was an underground training base. A large spacious room with tall ceilings and about the size of four football field, the room held a raised platform fifty feet up in the air where the Fire Nation boy was currently watching Team Avatar practicing combat against holographic soldiers armed with an experimental 'taser beam' they shot from their weapons; a beam of white, made of charged plasma bolt that, owing to the hard work of his team of scientists, could be literally produced by 'sparking' some electrical charges and… some other quantum mechanics jargons that even he and his advanced degree in robotics could barely understood.

All he knew was the technology, once perfected, could replace others like paintballs or bb guns, and even be used as a substitute for taser guns.

And yes, the Fire Nation boy was there in all his civilian glory.

Phoenix had joked when he appeared, calling him the 'landlord'. The boy had been quite amused by Sokka's reaction when he appeared, where the Water Tribe boy blatantly accused him of being the Dark One.

Imagine their surprise when the Dark One arrived five minutes after him.

There they were now, on the ground level. Phoenix and Painted Lady teamed up, covering behind a wall, waiting for opportunity. Arrow Boy, Blind Bandit, and Torrent were on the wall next to them, listening intently to Wolfman, Torcher, Acro, and Strongman on the wall next to them, where Wolfman was strategizing their move.

The Fire Nation boy had rigged the walls with microphone and had an ear bud on. On Ji was on the side next to him, sitting on a chair with a laptop on her lap, synchronizing the feed with the ear bud she also had in her ear.

With him, the Dark One, and On Ji were Swordsman and two of the newest members of Team Avatar. Kyoshi wore the rendition of the traditional Kyoshi Warriors armor; Suki had wanted to keep her costume as authentic as possible but On Ji had fitted the same makeup technology as the one Painted Lady was using, and she had had a set of armor remade from lighter and more resistant material than the traditional brocade and steel alloy, which Suki had begrudgingly admired, and she had bracers fitted with tech similar to those in the Rider's bracers, with communicators, scanners, and many more.

Lady stood with her arms crossed, watching the training below with great interest. Her outfit was that of a fitting garb of dark with lamelar armor and gloved bracers, all thin and did not hinder her preference of fast-paced krav maga and sambo, with maroon outline running on the edges of her armor, a pair of boots with a slight pointy toe, and a simple domino mask with maroon shade, trimmed with dark, with the pattern of red rose running across the middle. She wore dark lipstick and a wakizashi strapped on her back and another one tucked on her belt. Adding to her arsenal were a pair of small handguns strapped to her thighs.

The Fire Nation boy was immensely curious to see how these two that he had, to be completely honest, handpicked himself thought a series, well, actually multiple series of machinations, fit in with the group.

Aang, Katara, Toph, and Sokka had talents for sure. Each was trained in different kinds of martial arts and had undergone quite a vigorous training with Piandao to control their metapowers, with the exception of Toph who was a beginner although she did show an unfathomably high talent in fighting. Korra, Mako, and Bolin had both skills and experience, honed by the numerous pro-meta fights they had participated in, although, as a tradeoff, they had grown stubbornly accustomed to the 'honest' fighting. Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee had experience in the superheroes arena, the most promising of them all, in the Fire Nation boy's opinion. However, the trio were a close-knitted fighting group and had a lot to learn about letting others get into their mix.

Suki and Asami, despite their lack of metapowers, were similar to each other than to any of the other 'groups' among Team Avatar. True, they were, for the most part, inexperienced. Their skills in combat, however, the boy believed could rival any of those in the Team, of even outmatch them; yes, even the Black Riders.

Suki hailed from Kyoshi Island of Earth Kingdom, where she, like many other girls, were trained in the art of combat since childhood in the Kyoshi Warriors, the centuries-years-old fighting group famed for their prowess and discipline, and being an all-women group. In this modern era, Kyoshi Warriors mostly served as honor guards for visiting dignitaries and security for village events, but their hundreds of year old martial skills and philosophy were still as well-honed as they were in the glory days.

And Asami, whom the boy was acquainted with since childhood, their fathers being some kind of business partners, had been extensively trained in combat due to some tragic trauma in her family. Asami was a black belt in krav maga and sambo, and dabbled in kendo, ninjutsu, and aikido. The boy himself had spared with Asami quite often in the past, a favorite pastime of the two friends whenever one visited the other's countries, and he knew of Asami's preference of grappling techniques. He had had his shoulder accidentally dislocated more times than he would care to remember.

"What do you think?" the boy asked the Dark One and Swordsman casually.

The Dark One remained impassive while Swordsman sighed openly.

"Terrible", the boy surmised. He had heard Wolfman's strategy of decoy and flanking through the comm, where supposedly he, Torrent, and Torcher, with their long-range attack will stay in cover and provide distraction while Phoenix and Painted Lady, with their massive elemental attack would overwhelmed the enemies defenses, which would only be the _second distraction_ (Sokka sounded very excited when he explained this part), only for Blind Bandit to use her cords to break the walls the enemies were covering behind. Acro and Arrow Boy, with their agility, would score the finishing blow.

It was overly complicated and/or overwhelmingly simple in mostly the wrong places, but the Fire Nation boy thought the strategy was passable. Now, if only Phoenix would stop staring at Painted Lady, and if only Acro and Arrow Boy did not get impatient and moved out too quickly, and the Blind Bandit did not lose her temper over it.

"They worked rather well yesterday", Swordsman commented. "What changed?"

"I have some ideas", the Fire Nation boy gestured the Dark One and Swordsman to follow him. "Don't let them kill each other", he said to On Ji before he led the two mentors out of the room and into the elevator leading up.

The Dark One sighed and pushed his hood off, revealing his face which was almost identical to the Fire Nation boy, only that his hair was dark brown and not jet black, spiky, and his eyes was of darker hue of amber. Swordsman hid his surprise well.

The Fire Nation boy pressed the button leading down and turned to Swordsman. "Meet my cousin. Nise."

Nise smiled at Piandao and his face began to change; cheekbones sunk, jaw widened, forehead shortening; he became a completely different person.

"Don't get excited", the Fire Nation boy snickered. "Nise can only shift his face and only into someone whose DNA is in his system. We found out about that when he got in a car accident and I gave my blood to him because the hospital was out."

"Please tell me I can go home now", Nise whined.

"You can go home now, Nise", the boy said, smiling.

"Good", Nise stretched uncomfortably. "This thing chafes!"

"Gotta grow into it, Nise", the boy said. "Eat your veggies."

The elevator dinged and opened, and the three stepped out into the 'dorms'; a circular middle area that houses a large marble table surrounded by fifty chairs, with six hallways leading to a series of doors, each leading to a room fitted with beds, desk, computers, and other amenities for comfort. The R&D in his Industry designed this as a bunker for government's higher-ups, but the boy has implemented their design in their hideout.

Nise walked into one of the supposedly empty rooms where he would change and then exited the HQ through one of the secret elevators at each hallway. The Fire Nation boy entered a room in the middle hallway where he had stored his gears and came out a few minutes later as the Dark One.

"I was hoping for Aang or Korra to lead the team", the Dark One confessed to Swordsman as they reentered the elevator.

"Interesting choice", Swordsman frowned.

"I have faith in them", the Dark One shrugged. "Mako was a very pleasant surprise, though."

"He would make a better choice", Swordsman voiced his opinion. "Aang is too meek and Korra hotheaded."

They returned to the training room and found the Team bickering.

The sound of Swordsman's footsteps was enough to silence them.

Wolfman looked particularly peeved, eyeing the Dark One with obvious fury in his blue eyes; Sokka was still sore about not being elected leader and it was no surprise that he was one of the few who did not vote for the Dark One. Blind Bandit was especially candid about her choice of words and Torrent was no help either. Phoenix was still stealing glances at the Painted Lady, trying to sneak glances through the veil.

"So… whaddup?" the Dark One greeted.

The Team, minus Phoenix and Painted Lady, started speaking at once. Wolfman, Blind Bandit, and Torrent were especially fiery with Arrow Boy and Acro trying hard to hold them back.

"Enough!" Torcher shouted over the noise, as the spicy bright red of his indicated he would. His color pulsed for a brief moment as he steeled himself and he wrenched off his mask. The whole Team gasped.

Strongman hissed unhelpfully. "Bro… you took off your mask!"

"This is not gonna work if we keep our identities from each other", Mako said to the team, directed mainly to Phoenix, who looked impassive, and Acro, whose hands were on her mouth. "If we are to work together and face dangers, watching each other's back out there, we should at least know who exactly was standing next to us as we fight. I'm Mako Sanders."

Mako turned to his fellow Ferrets and, groaning, Bolin and Korra took off their masks. Wolfman hesitated but he took off his mask, prompting Arrow Boy and Blind Bandit to follow his gesture. Lady and Kyoshi turned to each other and shrugged before they took off their disguise. Katara tapped her seashell with her pinky, which made Phoenix giddy inside as the markings disappeared from her tanned skin, and took off her veiled hat, which made Azula exclaimed. "I knew it!"

Katara flinched. "What? What? You knew what?"

"It's your turn", Mako said to her and Acro. "We won't force you but we would appreciate it."

"Wait, this is optional?!" Sokka protested. "And you're telling me NOW?"

Mako growled. "Just— _okay_!"

All eyes then returned to Acro and Phoenix.

"Acro", Phoenix called. "Help."

Exasperating, Ty Lee took off her mask. They gasped again.

"Ty Lee!" Katara exclaimed. "It IS you!"

Ty Lee giggled, nudging on Phoenix's sleeves.

"Yeah… this is a rather tricky mask to take off, so—"

"Azula…" Ty Lee drawled dangerously.

"Azula?!" the Team exclaimed, save for Toph who asked. "Who's Azula?"

"Well, you know", Aang half-whispered to Toph as Azula begrudgingly took off her mask. "One of the seniors. The scary looking one."

"Yeah, of course! The scary _looking_ one", Toph threw her arms up in the air, then waved her hand in front of her face.

"I'm scary now?" Azula asked Aang with that dangerous tone.

Gulping, Aang nodded weakly.

Azula smirked. "You're okay, tattoo boy."

"Azula…" Katara whispered, eyes widened in disbelief. She did not understand how Azula could stay so… so calm.

"Tada", the Fire Nation girl deadpanned.

"Very good", the Dark One clasped his hand loudly, drawing attention back to him. Katara's disbelieved watery eyes still held fast on Azula.

"I did say it's optional…" Mako began.

"And I appreciate that", the Dark One nodded at him. "You have to understand that even among the Black Riders, I belong to an extremely clandestine black ops group. We are not just mercenaries. We are trained to fight _and_ win Great War III if need be. The identities of the members of this specific division of the Riders must be kept classified."

"And _that_ …is optional", Archer exclaimed from the top, framed by Rock and Ghost.

They leaped down from the height like it was nothing and joined the group.

"Of the four of us, Rock and Dark One, in their civilian skins are… say, part of the high society", he explained, pointedly avoiding eye contact with either Asami, Azula, or Ty Lee, who were also part of Republic City's high society. "They are too tempting a target, so please excuse them", he pulled down his face mask and pushed his hood off. "Detective Takamichi Mori, RCPD, nice to meet you all. You can call me Taka", he grinned at the kids.

Ghost took off her disguise next and she looked dourer than Taka.

"This is Bara, my big sis", he introduced her. "You may have noticed her—", Bara hit him on the back. "—nowhere *cough* nowhere at all."

"Well", Swordsman sighed, reaching out for his mask. "Might as well…"

Ty Lee gasped loudly. "Master Piandao! Azula, look! It's Master Piandao!"

"Yes, Ty Lee", Azula said dryly. "He's standing in front of me."

"Wooowww… Master Piandao is Swordsmaster!"

"Ty Lee, dear", Piandao had a kind smile on his face despite the bulge on his vein. "I'm Swordsman. Swordsmaster is my mentor."

"This is why I never wanted to be the leader", the Dark One sighed. "I was hoping my Riders and I can assist in a more… freelance capacity."

"Wait…" Katara said. "Does it mean Stealth is…"

"Mai", Ty Lee nodded.

"Oh, dear…" Katara groaned into her hands. "Is this why we stopped doing sleepover?" she asked Azula accusingly.

Azula replied with her trademark bluntness. "Yup."

"What about the Blue Spirit?" Mako asked. "Where is he anyway? And where's Stealth?"

"Well, Mai did say something about a dress fitting and a date. Zuko was supposed to drive her, remember? That's why you hitched a ride with me", Ty Lee said to Azula. "As for the Blue Spirit…" she turned hopefully to the Dark One.

"Yeah… about that…" the Dark One decided to lie. "I don't know who he is either."

"How do you not know a member of your Riders?" Aang asked incredulously.

"He's not a Rider", Taka laughed. "Actually, now that I think about it, he's probably the only one in the Team who is a free agent."

"_Used to be_ a free agent", Korra corrected; the Dark One was pleasantly surprised by the powerful glow Korra's dark blue pulsated for that one brief second. "He's one of us now."

"His work ethic and methods are very…" the Dark One sucked his teeth. "_Riderlike_."

"That being said, I think it's fair if we keep our identities secret from those two, I'm just saying", Toph suggested. Nobody responded but they silently agreed.

There was a beep and they turned to the balcony upstairs where On Ji was. The girl got up and said to something to an object too small in her hands; her voice echoed through the PA system. "Team, we've got a mission."

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Dragon Flats Borough – Central Bank; Friday, 20 September 2013, 07:36 PM)_

Central Bank was in disarray. The Rough Rhino's leader, Colonel Mongke stepped out of the building, grinning at the escaping citizens. A couple of the reckless ones tried to film the entire robbery on their phones, which irked the Colonel. Mongke produced a fireball the size of cantaloupe and threw it at them, scattering those fools.

There was a loud scream coming from inside the bank, followed by an explosion. Yeh-Lu, Monke suspected was having fun with the hostages again. A few blocks away, a black van that, as the appearance suggested, was more on the military side than civilian, skidded to stop, followed by the Dark One, the Blue Spirit, Archer, Ghost, and the trio, each riding their bikes. Stealth and the Blue Spirit had rendezvous with them on the way and, they, being themselves, did not realize the awkward stare the other teammates cast them every now and then.

The Dark One stepped forward and, to their credit, the Team swarmed him while still keeping an arm's length distance from him, just as he taught them. Still, he still didn't like how they stood among themselves.

Phoenix and Painted Lady, whose red-tinted sapphire blue and pure ocean blue respectively, always had that part where they always seemed to connect but carefully, now the part was wavy and awkward, and the two girls stood quite far from each other. Torcher's spicy bright red almost enveloped Lady's soft purple, and his stance did seem like he was ready to throw himself in the incoming danger that might or might not fly towards Lady. Wolfman's sky blue was still as strong and radiating as always, if not more, standing out like a sore thumb; the Dark One knew that he would try to strike out on his own again.

The rest of the team seemed to be doing well though. Torrent's steady but wavy blue and Arrow Boy's calm cloudy yellow matched how far along those two had come; they were ready. Acro's ever-present and –bright pink had started to envelop her teammates which clearly showed in the previous training in which she had begun to be able to work well with the other heroes as well. Strongman's olive green was as strong as ever but, then again, the Dark One never had doubt in him. He was, however, kinda disappointed on how Torcher seemed to have slipped. Stealth's shadowy black and the Blue Spirit's impenetrable dark one that enveloped his body like a shell were as hard to read as ever. Blind Bandit's jade-like moss green was… distant. She had been awfully quiet as of late but the Dark One had found little opportunity to spare her more attention.

There really was only one way this could have gone if Team Avatar was to have a future.

"Kyoshi, Lady, with me", the Dark One said firmly without any trace of mirth that was his trademark. "Arrow Boy, Strongman, Blind Bandit, sweep the area quickly to evacuate any civilians left. The rest of you, form a perimeter around the battle zone and do not let anyone get out."

"Wait!" Wolfman, as the Dark One knew he would, exclaimed and he looked upset. "What do you mean by that?!"

The Dark One ignored him. "This is an express order from me, your elected leader. If any of you disobey without a good reason, you will be expelled from the Team and I will personally make sure that you _can't_ be heroes anymore."

Azula felt her heart skip a bit despite her still cool, calm, and collected front. The Fire Nation boy had told her a bit of his past, of how he, at a very young age, had been involved with the clandestine military affair of his country. True, he had in his command a unit of deadly soldiers as a proof and it took a certain quality of man to earn the respect of such group, but Azula had not truly believed it until now. The way he looked, despite his hood only showing his mouth down… there was something deadly in it.

The Dark One covertly regulated his breath, slowly drawing himself out of Azula's head. He never truly sure he liked it when he involuntarily slip into somebody's mind the way he just did.

Sighing, he stepped closer to Sokka and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Trust me", he said with a kinder tone. "Listen to my orders and obey. If we lose today because of my mistake, I will happily step down and quit the team."

And without waiting for a response from the slightly stunned Wolfman, he turned and walked towards the chaos. Lady and Kyoshi, much to his relief, followed him without hesitation, which snapped the rest of the team out of their thought as they began following him. Wolfman was the last to move.

"Alright", the Dark One said. "HQ, take note."

"_HQ, taking note",_ Song said through the comm.

"One, we need to come up with faster, more efficient transport", the Dark One broke into a stride, so did his Team.

"_Better transport, got it."_

"Two", the Dark One pulled out the gun he holstered on his waist. "Remind me to implement crowd control in the training regimen."

"_Crowd control training, noted."_

Lady pulled her twin wakizashi, Kyoshi snapped her left wrist and activated her portable buckler, pulling her katana out at the same time. Archer notched an arrow, Rock cracked his knuckles, Blue Spirit pulled out his dao.

"Also, a reminder to access out satellite and record everything that happens today", the Dark One ordered.

"_Yes, sir."_

Arrow Boy readied his staff, turning to Painted Lady who nodded. Wolfman, still a bit sulky, unstrapped his rifle and turned off the safety. Blind Bandit tugged on her bracer and Phoenix breathed out calmly.

"Team Avatar! Let's roll!"

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Dragon Flats Borough – Central Bank; Friday, 20 September 2013, 07:59 PM)_

Mongke looked around the bank, to the subdued hostages down on the ground. Vacchir, with his bow ready, and Kachi, gripping his guan dao with two hands, were on the perimeter of the hostages, peeking out the window to the deserted street to watch for the police that had not come.

Someone did come for them, a fluttering black robe crashed through the window and pounced at Vacchir the archer at his landing, fired a bolt of red plasma at Kachi, scoring a hit on his chest, and rolled forward to take cover from a fireball Mongke threw at him. Mongke readied a fireball on each hand; Ogedei and Yeh-Lu readied their weapons, gingerly moving closer to the middle of the room where Mongke was.

The Dark One moved with an uncanny speed from one cover to another, leaving but a dark blur that marked his movement. Yeh-Lu, the Bombardier, aimed his hand to the direction of where he last saw the Dark One; his robotic arm whirred and transformed into a deadly looking gun barrel with holes on it, marking it as one with rapid fire capabilities and, from the size, accommodated quite a high caliber round.

He fired his gun at the blur, raining bullets at the dark blur finally at his third try and did not stopped shooting until the dark robe was riddled with holes. The ruined dark robe fell to the ground slowly.

Yeh-Lu felt a tap on his shoulder and a short thin boy in yellow and orange garb with a hood that bore an arrow stood there with a staff rested on his shoulder. "Surprised?" Arrow Boy asked before he whacked the cyborg across the head with his staff.

"What?!" Mongke roared as Wolfman, Phoenix, Acro, and Strongman entered through the windows, surrounding the remaining two Rhinos. "I thought only three of you are coming!"

The Dark One emerged from his hiding place, not wearing his robe. His hooded battle garb looked just like the ones worn by the other Black Riders, minus the face mask, allowing Mongke to see the smug smirk on his face.

The Dark One pressed a part on her breastplate and spoke. "Stealth, Blue", he called. "Take'em down."

"The next time you want to eavesdrop on us", Phoenix sneered from behind Mongke. "Use a better equipment. Your comm tap buzzes in our link."

The Dark One noticed the fluctuation in the two darks, signifying that Stealth and Blue Spirit had begun engaging the two Rhinos who were on the rooftops, tapping into their commlink and then, after the Team moved in, stayed and intercepted the police.

Then, without warning, the Dark one lunged towards Mongke with a sword. The Rough Rhino barely had time to raise his arms, defending himself with his metal bracers. The Dark One's attacks were lethal and all aimed at his opponent's vitals, but Mongke was an experienced fighter. Mongke roared and waved his arms in a wide arc like a bat; the Dark One leaped back to evade the blow and Mongke took the opening to run to the exit. Ogedei, who had only been locked in a stare down with the nearby heroes, who all stood and did nothing but watch, ran after the colonel.

With Yeh-Lu down (the one who had been communicating with Utor and Kama out there), there was no way for Mongke to tap into the enemies comm. As the consequence, as he and Ogedei got out, there was no way they could know of Lady and Kyoshi, ready above them for an ambush, hanging on the wall above the exit.

The two newbies leaped down and pounced at the two villains' backs, bringing them down. Kyoshi and Lady leaped back, blocking Mongke and Ogedei's escape route. The rest of the heroes, minus Stealth and Blue Spirit, surrounded them; Blind Bandit, Painted Lady, Torcher, Rock, Ghost, and Archer, along with Wolfman and Phoenix who came out of the bank with the Dark One, surrounded Mongke and Ogedei.

The Dark One joined Kyoshi and Lady in the circle, ready to face Mongke and Ogedei. The three heroes lunged at the same time from three different directions. The Dark One faced Mongke in a one-on-one while the girls fought against Ogedei and his weighted chain.

Mongke threw fast fireball after fireball; the Dark One dashed like a wolf, zigzagging to avoid the blast, slashing the last fireball and reversing the slash, aiming for Mongke's face. Mongke pulled his head back in time; the Dark One let the kinetic of his slash carried him into a spin and his feet shot out, scoring a spinning kick on Mongke's chest.

Ogedei launched his chain at his incoming opponents; Kyoshi stepped forward with her golden buckler raised, defending themselves. Lady sidestepped while Kyoshi caught the chain with her free sword, stabbing with impressive accuracy into the loop of a chain with her katana, holding it. Lady rushed forward, pulling her twin wakizashi out and, with a double slash aimed at Ogedei's grip, forced the Rhino to abandon his weapon and leap backward lest Lady cut off his arm.

Mongke and Ogedei had their backs on each other, surrounded by the three heroes.

Mongke gritted his teeth, knowing full well the futility of resistance, he chose to raise his arms and surrendered. The police appeared just in time with their blaring siren.

High above an apartment building, Blue Spirit and Stealth oversaw the battle; a few blocks away, tied securely and hanging on a street lamp, were the defeated Utor and Kama.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Qing Yang District – Team Avatar HQ; Friday, 20 September 2013, 09:50 PM)_

The tunnel entrances slid open and Team Avatar arrived in their bikes and van. While the bikers got off with grace, as soon as the van's side door slid open, Torcher, Strongman, Torrent, Arrow Boy, Archer, Wolfman, Kyoshi, Lady, and Blind Bandit spilled out and fell on top of each other.

"See what I mean?" the Dark One approached the four rear support members, aiming such comment directly at Song. On Ji, grinning, rushed ahead to help the fallen members of Team Avatar up. Piandao nodded, receiving a slight bow from the Dark One.

Dragon stood like a statue with arms crossed.

The Dark One saw the pulse in Phoenix's red-tinted sapphire blue and turned slightly to acknowledge her arriving near him. The pulse, he knew, was Phoenix steeling herself: Azula took off her mask.

Then again, behind them, the rest of Team Avatar, minus Stealth and Blue Spirit, had also taken off their disguise, laughing as they disentangled themselves from one another; Asami's long hair was caught in Toph's wire coils on her back, Korra and Aang was helping the girl freeing her hair; a part of Katara's dress was lodged in the crack in Suki's armor and she was half-screaming, half-laughing when Ty Lee playfully tugged on Suki.

"Quite a team you have assembled here", Azula said to Dragon, openly wincing, trying to see the face through the slits on Dragon's mask. "You know, as a sign of good faith, most of us have done away with our masks."

"Yeah…" Dragon cleared his throat uncomfortably. "T-this is…uh, a very elaborate piece. Difficult to put on and take off, you see…"

"Oh, come now, Iroh", Piandao smacked his lips impatiently.

"_Who_?" Azula's eyes widened.

Sighing, Iroh relented and took off his helmet, grinning nervously at his niece.

Azula looked rather stunned. "It can't be", she shook her head.

"What can't be?" Iroh asked.

"You can't be Dragon!"

"Why not?"

"Ng…" Azula chewed her lip. She stepped closer and, with a pained face, rubbed her uncle's belly softly.

"…You're mean", Iroh gave her a dry stare.

Among the rest, Suki had Katara and Ty Lee in a playful headlock. "So, when are you two gonna take off your masks?" she grinned at Stealth and Blue Spirit.

The two masked ones turned to each other and, without saying a word, the Blue Spirit mounted his bike and rode off. "That was rude", Suki scowled. "We know it's you, Mai."

Stealth did not react.

"Do you know who he is?" Katara asked.

Stealth sighed and stalked off to her bike; she mounted it and rode off.

The Dark One, listening to Azula and Iroh's conversation, felt a touch of sky blue on his back. He turned around suddenly and seemed to have surprised Sokka; Sokka flinched.

"H-hi", the Water Tribe boy rubbed the back of his head. "I have to ask you something. How do you know that Suki and Asami could handle their own? I mean, you didn't… you let them fight on their own, and you didn't guide them through the commlink too, no one did. And they haven't joined any of the team exercises too."

"Simple", the Dark One turned to him completely, showing Sokka that he was serious. "I know what they can do, I know what weapons they have with them and their proficiency at them, and I know they can work together", the Dark One said. "And, most importantly, I know that you…" he poked Sokka on the chest. "…would disregard my order and jump in to save Suki if the need arise; and so would Mako if Asami were in danger."

Sokka's sky blue pulsed a little.

"To be a good leader, Sokka, is so much less about 'leading' than you think. Know your people; their skills and abilities, their personalities, their… everything, really. Know them like they're your own brothers and sisters", he turned to the group, among which Taka and Bara were fooling around with the kids with Rocky watching. "Each and every one of the Black Riders would lay down their lives for me, Sokka, if I asked them to and, you know what, so would I if they asked me to. They are my brothers and sisters", he smiled at Sokka. "Keep that in mind", he patted the boy on the shoulder. "And one day, you'll lead a team of your own and you will be excellent at it", the Dark One turned and walked to the living quarters.

Sokka let his words sink. Sighing, he turned around and walked back to the group.

_Know your team…_

"Hey, guys!" Sokka grinned. "What about movies and pizza next weekend?"

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Qing Yang District – Team Avatar HQ; Friday, 20 September 2013, 10:30 PM)_

The Fire Nation boy got out of the shared bathroom on the boys' hallway; the three on the right side of the six hallways. Each hallway contained four rooms on each side and at the end of it a door led to a large communal bathroom, with each hallway accessing the same bathroom through their own door. He had taken a quick shower and changed into a simple black T shirt and shorts, and a pair of slippers. Rubbing the back of his neck with his towel, he made his way to the center room.

Azula was there, still in her Phoenix costumes but with her mask off and she held that in her hand. "What?" the boy chuckled.

"Tell me who the Blue Spirit is", Azula demanded right away.

The Fire Nation boy chuckled again and moved to the elevator with Azula in tow. They ascended to the lounging room next to the command room and the Fire Nation boy moved to the kitchen to make coffee. "Hi, guys!" the Fire Nation boy greeted cheerfully at Team Avatar who was so much more than just surprised to see him there. "Don't worry, I already know who each and every one of you is", he waved off their attempt to cover their face; Sokka had jumped behind the couch with Bolin, and Korra was using Suki as a meat shield.

The Fire Nation boy extracted two mugs from the drawer and poured fresh powder into the coffee maker. Azula still waited for the answer. "You know who he is", she accused. "There was that one thing when you and he stayed behind when we went to meet the rest of the Team that one time."

The Fire Nation boy drew a sharp breath and turned to Azula. "Before that…" he leaned closer and kissed her on the lips; Azula kissed back. "You look pretty with lipstick", he smirked after he broke off the kiss. "Taste a bit off though", he smacked his lips and licked them a little.

Azula bit her lower lip to hold her blossoming smile. She reached out to the front of the boy's shirt and, gripping it, he pulled herself closer to him and kissed him tenderly for as long as she could before anyone noticed.

Korra whooped at the end of the news they were watching, reporting the aftermath of the bank robbery, prompted the two to stop kissing although they had that wispy smile on them till the time they went home.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Goldenbells – the Kais' Residence; Saturday, 21 September 2013, 02:22 AM)_

In her room, comfy in her tank top and shorts, Azula, playing the online game, typed into the PM window.

_BlueGirl: i will never understand that_

_RockCandy: give it time. soem thing just takes longer to understand XD_

_BlueGirl: u sound like my uncle -_-_

_RockCandy: iroh is a wise man u shoud isten to him more XD_

_BlueGirl: u know my uncle? O.o_

_RockCandy: old people know each other. dont u know that_

The sound of Zuko's bedroom door startled Azula a little. She checked the small table clock she had on her desk and realized that it was almost 2:30.

_BlueGirl: it's late. sleep time. nite_

_RockCandy: sweet dream, princess :D_

Azula logged off her game and stretched as she waited for the window to close. She picked up her phone and checked for any messages. Yawning, she turned off her computer and got up. She walked to her bed and collapsed there face first, feeling very tired indeed. Even on nights when she had little to do, she felt tired.

Lying by her side, the Fire Nation boy pulled her blanket to her shoulder.

Azula rolled to her back and stared at her ceiling. "This must be a dream"

The Fire Nation boy, lying sideways with his head propped on his hand, hummed. "Well, I suppose it is."

"My dad will kill you when he finds out that the Team know out identities now", Azula said.

"He won't", the Fire Nation boy scooched closer and held the girl close.

Azula felt a fresh wave of sleepiness once he was safely tucked in his arms, smelling soft scent of chrysanthemum and feeling the warmth of his embrace. "I want to know everything."

The Fire Nation boy smiled and whispered. "Sleep."

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Central Plains District – Dragon Pearl Manor; Saturday, 21 September 2013, 02:34 AM)_

The Fire Nation boy, lying comfortably in his bed, slept with a faint smile on his face.


	10. Chapter 9 - Homecoming

**Chapter 9 – Homecoming**

Disclaimer: I own nothing

* * *

><p><em>(Republic City, Tosako – the United Nations Academy; Saturday, 21 September 2013, 11:23 AM)<em>

Haru's green coupe entered the parking lot and stopped at a parking space. He and Suki stepped out. Haru was carrying a coat hanger with his suit on it, and he looked slightly unhappy. "I'll see you later, cuz?" Suki grinned rather guiltily.

Haru just grunted, throwing her his keys.

A silver SUV arrived shortly after, stopping at the Jasmine Dragon across the street. Gyatso and Aang stepped out. "I'll be in the teashop when you are ready to go home, Aang", Gyatso said cheerfully. "Iroh and I have a lot to talk about."

Grinning widely, Aang waved his goodbye and ran across the street. Though the Air Nomad boy was wearing his dark red bandana, covering the tattoo on his forehead, and a bright orange jacket with the picture of banana on the back, he was wearing Bermuda jeans and the blue lines on his legs were visible.

Aang chuckled to himself as he remembered how his empathic power had led him to Toph at day 1. He had thought it was because Toph was blind and she would not be bothered by his tattoo. When Katara had managed to persuade Aang to be less self-conscious about his tattoo, he had to admit that it had been quite awkward in the first few days. Many people stared and there was a school bully who made him his target.

Toph had beaten them all up.

All in all, his new life in Republic City had been good. He had made tons of good friends at school, at Master Piandao's, and among the heroes. Most Air Nomad still clung to their monastic ways and most of them who domiciled in Republic City lived in the Air Temple Island, under the care of Abbot Tenzin. There, the monks received spiritual and martial training of their culture, and they were homeschooled.

Aang knew Gyatso still kept contact with the Air Temples, by extension, Abbot Tenzin, despite the fact that the senior monk had resumed his secular life since the slaughter of his people in the Southern Air Temple. However, Aang also knew that Gyatso had not abandoned his Air Nomad ways; the senior monk still refused to grow his hair, although he had shed off his monk robes, and it was Gyatso who awarded Aang his tattoos during their vagabond days after he declared he had nothing left to teach Aang.

—BOOM—

A cloud of smoke appeared from afar, following the explosion. Aang looked around; pedestrians and students and guests who lingered outside and around the school had stopped and were looking at the direction of the smoke, pointing and murmuring, taking shots with their cellphones.

Aang took the advantage of their distracted attention to run, normally run, to the security post at the gate of the Academy; the security guard had come out of the post, calling the police with his cellphone. After successfully sneaking inside, he tapped into his power, feeling the world slowing down around him, and changed into his uniform that he carried in his bags.

Arrow Boy sped out of the post, hiding his bag in a nearby bush, and ran towards the direction of the smoke; he ran across a bully sticking up a geekish boy, and mischievously freed the geek's collar from the bully's grip and set up the geek behind the bully where, as time normalized for the two, the geek gave the bully the most painful wedgie ever. For good measure, he picked up littered trash too and stuffed them in the shirt of a boy who was in the middle of throwing away a sandwich wrap.

Arrow Boy was already halfway when the bully screamed a wonderful soprano at the hand of the bewildered geek, who grinned guiltily at the downed bully, and the confused look of the young man with a bunch of trash spilling down his shirt, and the laughter he suffered at the hands of nearby people.

The building that was caught on fire, Arrow Boy recognized it as a clothing store run by a nice Earth Kingdom lady. Gyatso had brought him there once on their way home from Aang's first day visiting the Academy before the orientation; they had purchased the bandana he was still wearing there, along with a warm coat for Gyatso. The flame was big and some citizens were around it, at a safe distance, holding on to the Earth Kingdom lady who was positively bawling, crying out a girl's name, and being held back by the citizens.

Arrow Boy sped inside the burning building and did a quick exploratory, finding a little crying girl in her room upstairs, curling in the corner of the room. "Hello", Arrow boy grinned, making it as real as possible so that his smile would reach his eyes; the girl could not see his mouth anyway. "It's okay, everything's gonna be okay", Arrow Boy reassured the girl, crouching down and picking her up in his protective arms. "What's your name?"

The little girl looked up to him and sniffed. "M-mey", she hiccupped.

"Alright, Mey", Arrow Boy tried to sound cheery and steady. "Close your eyes now", he said, embracing the girl tighter. Arrow Boy felt the crack under his feet and decided to press the girl's head onto his chest, and sped ahead. Arrow Boy dodged the licks of flame and exited the establishment, aiming straight for the Earth Kingdom lady.

The Earth Kingdom lady was surprised indeed when she suddenly found her daughter and a strange boy in yellow and orange garb in front of her. "Mey!" she exclaimed and hugged her child.

"Is there anyone else?" Arrow Boy asked quickly.

Mey's eyes widened and she suddenly screamed. "My little sister!"

Without hesitation, Arrow Boy tapped into his power and raced back in. Two steps past the threshold, he was blasted back by a sudden explosion from inside. Arrow Boy grunted as he landed harshly in front of the building; his gray eyes went wide as he saw part of the building crumbling and falling towards him.

A blast of frost hit the crumbling wall and held it in place, buying him enough time to superspeed away. Arrow Boy stopped by the Painted Lady for a moment, chirping. "I owe you one", before he reentered the building and explored the empty second floor. He could not find the little sister anywhere.

"Where are you…?" Arrow Boy muttered, wiping his sweaty forehead. He supersped and explored the whole floor once again more carefully.

Then, his commlink buzzed. "Bzztt… Aang! There's no little sister!" the Painted Lady said urgently. "It's a doll!"

Arrow Boy stopped and was caught between a gawk and a facepalm. He reentered Mey's room and snatched the only doll he could find; a slightly singed Barbie doll. Arrow Boy exited the burning building and stopped right in front of Mey who squealed and leaped into his arms, and the appreciative applause from the citizens.

Grinning, he waved a little at them. The citizens then moved closer to him and Painted Lady, ready with their adoration. "Umm… Aang?" Painted Lady laughed nervously, eyes fixed on the mob. Understanding the situation, Arrow Boy tapped into his powers and the world slowed down again. He picked up Painted Lady, bridal style, and sped ahead, making a run for it.

For a second, the Painted Lady was wary about the mob, considering her rather minimalist disguise; the next second, she was off his feet and staring at the ceiling of Iroh's apartment. "Whoa!" she exclaimed, instinctively jolting herself. Almost falling, she gripped tighter onto Arrow Boy. "You are… surprisingly strong", Painted Lady said to the boy who was smaller, shorter, and two years younger than her.

Arrow Boy laughed nervously, wisely opting against the honest response of. _"You are surprisingly heavy."_

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

**Heroes of the Republic City**

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – the United Nations Academy; Saturday, 21 September 2013, 01:22 PM)_

"I don't know", Katara washed her hands on the sink in the bathroom. "Aang's pretty cute."

"You should totally ask him out", Suki giggled. "He's a freshman, so I think it's okay for you to ask him out."

"You do realize that he and Toph have been spending a lot of time together, right?" Katara asked the other girl dryly, freezing the water on her hands with her power and dusted it off like powder.

"I thought it's because Toph's… you know", Suki waved her hand in front of her eyes awkwardly. "Aang's basically a bodyguard. Or a guard dog. A cute Chihuahua guard dog."

Katara laughed.

"Anyway, Toph said she won't be coming to the homecoming", Suki shrugged. "Something about house arrest. Her parents are finally coming to town."

The bathroom door opened and Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee walked in. Naturally, Azula turned on her heels and tried to run away; Mai and Ty Le caught her and pushed her back in, Suki made a grab for Katara who tried to flee into a bathroom stall.

"Stop it, you two!" Ty Lee stomped her foot down. "You two need to talk."

"Alright", Azula straightened up, regaining her prideful look. "Mai, how are you doing this fine day?"

Mai simply looked at her.

"You two used to be so close", Suki sighed. "Now, you two barely talk to each other. None of you are leaving this bathroom until you fix things up", she declared before she, Mai, and Ty Lee exited the bathroom and locked the door behind them; Mai had somehow acquired the key.

Azula and Katara could barely look at each other.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Qing Yang District – Deep Forest Industry Compound; Saturday, 21 September 2013, 01:26 PM)_

The Fire Nation boy gasped sharply, surprising Teo, the Boulder, and the three scientists who were Teo's assistants, all of who were only inches away from his face. His amber eyes turned to their multicolor ones. "What's up?" he asked with mouth still full of fries.

"You just… froze", Teo said slowly.

The Fire Nation boy waved it off and resumed his eating. "Don't worry about it", he said. "Just a little condition I have."

They kept staring at him.

"So…" he chewed slowly. "How did the testing go?"

Suddenly, Teo and the scientists sprung to life. "Well, it worked with rubber bullets", Teo said.

The Boulder grinned. "The Boulder felt absolutely nothing", he said proudly, pounding his broad chest.

"Autumn is coming", Teo added. "We're going to need to move indoors, due to the rain", Teo said. "But, we don't have any devices for the walls in any of our indoors facilities."

"Just put up a tent to cover the equipment", the Fire Nation boy took another bite of his sandwich, then he turned to the Boulder. "It'd be good to see if rain and cold weather could disrupt your power. Or have you any experience in this area?"

The Boulder scratched his head. "Not that I know of."

"Aha!" Teo pulled out a jar; a piece of paper with a cartoony face of the Boulder was stuck on it and it contained several bills and coins.

The Boulder facepalmed and reached for his back pocket; then again, he was wearing his rubbery suit and his wallet was in his locker. The Fire Nation boy pulled out his wallet and gave it to Teo. "I'll take it out of your salary", he grinned at the Boulder while Teo took out a five yuans bill to add to the ever-growing content of the jar.

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Central Plain District – the Satos' Mansion; Saturday, 21 September 2013, 01:27 PM)_

Central Plains District, despite the name, was located in the northeast part of the Republic City, and it was a large area that could be its own city. The District had been a very profitable real estate project by the City where they provided a lush green area, where the richest had purchased part of the land and built their luxurious estates, separated from the rest of the populace.

Satos' Mansion was a large establishment, built in the unique baroque architectural design of Republic City's origin, and Hiroshi Sato was quite pleased with his dwelling. The Satos used to live in the Goldenbell, but since the incident that cost them his wife's life, Hiroshi had relocated to Central Plains although he still retained ownership to his old house.

He knew that at the anniversary of his wife's death, Asami snuck into the house and placed flowers at the spot where his wife had died. Hiroshi never talked to Asami about it. No, there were a lot of things Asami would never know.

She smiled as she buttoned the last on his suit. "There you go", Asami stood up. "You look handsome, Daddy. Are you going with someone to the homecoming?"

Hiroshi chuckled. "I am too old for the romance game, honey", he ran his finger through his hair, the part where gray had trumped the dark.

"Don't be silly", Asami smiled kindly, helping her father with his tie. "I'm sure there are a lot of nice middle-aged lady out there, looking forward to the homecoming with a man like you."

Hiroshi laughed. "Speaking of men…"

"Yes, Daddy", Asami sighed but still smiling. "I _am_ going with someone. And no, I do not want to take the limo", she added rather sharply.

"How are you going to the homecoming then?" Hiroshi asked incredulously.

"In a van, believe it or not", Asami chuckled. "He waits table at the teashop across the street from the Academy and his boss lends him the van for the night."

"I shall very much like to meet this boy", Hiroshi said as Asami finished with his tie and moved behind him so he could see himself in the tall mirror.

"Alright, but be nice", Asami said, resting her chin on her father's shoulder. "I have to go get ready. The new satomobile racer report is ready on your desk", she pecked the man's cheek.

"You're a godsend", Hiroshi smiled and meant it, watching his daughter exiting his study on the mirror.

Hiroshi Sato got up and moved to his desk. There was a small table ornament, a bust of himself that Asami had commissioned as his birthday gift five years ago; only Hiroshi had made a major change on the bust. He pushed the forehead of the bust, flipping the top half open. There was a red button and he pressed it.

The blinds of his windows slid down, his door and windows locked themselves, and, above the fireplace, the large painting of Makapu Mountain slipped up, revealing a large screen behind it. The screen blinked and a dark silhouette of a hooded man in a dark room appeared.

"_I trust everything is in order_", the silhouette began.

"Yes", Hiroshi said.

"_Good",_ the silhouette said. "_Varrick has proven himself to be a liability. Measures will be taken to remove him… permanently"_, the silhouette said icily. _"I trust your loyalty will not be an issue. I'd hate to see a particular tragedy repeat itself on another female member of your family."_

Hiroshi gripped his fist. "Whatever business you have is with me!" he roared at the screen. "You leave my daughter out of this!"

"_I will",_ the silhouette said calmly. _"If you make yourself useful."_

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – the United Nations Academy; Saturday, 21 September 2013, 01:32 PM)_

Azula did not like awkwardness. She _loved_ awkwardness when it happens to other people, as she always found it so entertaining, but when awkwardness happened to her, she did not like it. There she was, chewing her lip, standing in front of the mirror with Katara by her side.

It was awkward.

As usual, Katara was the first to crack. "How did I not know that _you_ are Phoenix?!"

"Well…" Azula tugged on one of the two flocks of hair framing the side of her face. "We always do out superhero duties at night—"

"It was rhetorical!" Katara snapped.

"Why ask if you don't want answer?" Azula asked dryly. "And what about _you_?! You never told me you were a metahuman!"

"Yeah?! You never told me you were one too!"

"That's because I'm Phoenix! How many girls you know can shoot blue flame out of her fingertips?!"

Both girls were panting, red around the face, with anger.

Then, as usual, Katara relented first. "Don't you trust me?" she asked quietly.

Azula's jaw hardened for a second. "What's your excuse?" she said, almost growly.

Katara nearly flinched. She turned to the mirror and kept her eyes gazing at the reflection of her mother's chocker. "Ten years ago, some men broke into our house in the South Pole", she began, a single hot tear dropped. "Armed men", she gripped her fists and frost began to form where she made contact with the sink and drops of water around her froze. "They killed my mother", she finished, feeling the old anger and hate, and the slight but very welcomed feeling of… lightness, as she unloaded her burden on Azula.

Azula did not know what to say; she preferred to deal with logic. This touchy-feely stuff was far from being her expertise and she had never been accused of being emotional.

"My dad…" she began but her voice cracked; clearing her throat, she tried again. "When I was a kid, my parents said my power went out of control and I burnt my dad and a bunch of other people", she said. "I don't remember myself… I don't remember anything about Fire Nation", she said, summoning an unburning flame on her palm. "They never said it out loud, but I think the reason why we left Fire Nation, is because of that", she balled her hand, extinguishing her flame. "I suppose, they don't want anyone to know just in case my power gets out of control again. It will be much easier for us to move again."

"Don't say that", Katara muttered. "I've seen you in action. I think you can control your flame pretty well. I mean, you can hit people with it without harming them."

"True", Azula replied coolly. "But who can say what's gonna happen in the future", she exhaled loudly.

"It's gonna be okay", Katara moved to her and embraced her shoulder. "I'm sorry."

Azula swallowed hard and dragged those words out. "Me too."

They turned to each other and embraced.

Five seconds later… "Katara?"

"Yeah?"

"I have to pee."

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Dragon Flats Borough – Manawe Park; Saturday, 21 September 2013, 03:25 PM)_

The Blue Spirit dashed and dodged the throwing knives; his opponent, a man in dark tactical suit and the mask of a lynx, pulled out his ninjato and clashed with the Blue Spirit's blades. They pushed each other away, none losing footing, and clashed again. Nearby, the Dark One leaped backward and landed gracefully in a crouch; he pushed himself to the side with his feet and threw a single throwing knife at another man in tactical suit that evaded his throwing knife with a simple jerk of his head. The knife embedded itself on a lamppost a few feet behind the man and exploded. The lamppost fell down and hit the man on the head.

Grinning, the Dark One pulled out his gun and fired at two more who rushed towards him; the two men dodged the red plasma bolts and began firing back with their handguns which contains real bullets. Calmly, the Dark One pulled one foot back and repositioned himself ever so slightly that the bullets sailed past him. He dashed sideways and began zigzagging towards the men who kept firing and missing.

The Dark One lunged at the nearest one with an uppercut, sending him flying; the other one moved for close-quarter with a knife to support his gun. The Dark One evaded the slash of the knife, held up an arm to deflect the man's arm that fired his gun at him, and launched a side kick that scored the man's chest. He caught the man's arm as he staggered backward, the one with the gun-wielding hand, and twisted it by the wrist hard, disarming the man. The man wrenched his arm free and came at the Dark One with a thrust of his knife; the Dark one stepped into his attack, bumping his shoulder on the man's chest, catching his arm, and launching the man over his shoulder with a judo slam.

The man fell hard on his back, having the breath knocked out of him. The Dark One finished with a punch on his face, knocking him out. The Blue Spirit, having finished with his opponent earlier, walked to the Dark One, sheathing his dial saber.

All around the two heroes, about two dozens of unconscious men in dark tactical suits were lying around, all unconscious.

Fifteen minutes later, the two vigilantes were standing on the roof of a building nearby, watching the cops arresting those men in dark suits. The Blue Spirit stood like a sentinel, arms crossed, not saying a word; the Dark One half-sat on the railing, reloading his gun. The Dark One carried at least three guns with him. His main gun, the one he was reloading, he carried holstered to his front waist; it had the shape and look that were similar to a flintlock pistol with futuristic touch, with curve back and long barrel, and he was loading bullets of red plasma crystals into the opening on the barrel, above the trigger. The two guns he had strapped on his thighs had the appearance of a futuristic gun with extra part in front of the trigger, making them look like boxes.

The Dark One finished with his gun and holstered it back. "You are still worried?" he asked the Blue Spirit who remained impassive. "About Azula?"

The Blue Spirit did not respond.

"Then stay", the Dark One said simply. "Stay and help us. You can keep an eye on her personally."

The Blue Spirit's arms fell. He turned back and walked to the other end of the rooftop. The Dark One's calling him stopped him. "She will be alright", he said reassuringly. "You won't be; you'll die", the Dark One stood up and shrugged. "But, then again, so will I."

The Blue Spirit turned his head a fraction.

"Azula will be alright", the Dark One smiled genuinely. "It's a possibility, yes, but it's one of those that shines so very brightly, it trumps all other possibilities. I promise you that."

With that, the Blue Spirit nodded a little and jumped off the building.

**-A-I-R-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – the United Nations Academy; Saturday, 21 September 2013, 03:58 PM)_

Aang tugged on his collar a bit, gray eyes fixed on his target: the girl with tanned skin and brown hair, looking very pretty in her blue frilly blouse and jean shorts, with that crinkle on her blues eyes as the sunlight fell upon her and she laughed at whatever it was Suki was telling her.

Aang had to admit, Katara was… very attractive. He had begun to think that the attraction he felt when he first laid eyes on her in that classroom during orientation had nothing to do with his empathic power at all.

Gulping, Aang instinctively tugged on his collar again…

_**-0-0-few minutes ago-0-0-**_

_Aang was at his locker, piling up the relatively empty space with his new books. He also put in a Frisbee and stuck a picture of a group of Air Nomad monks on the door. Smiling at the photographs of his old life and old friends and mentors, Aang closed the door… and came face to face with Azula._

_Aang yelped like a little girl._

"_You still find me scary?"_

_He somehow knew Azula did not mean for that to be rhetorical._

"_Umm… yes?" _…very much so.

"_Good", Azula simply said before he grabbed the boy by the scruff of his collar and, with surprising strength, stuff him in his locker and locked the door._

"_Heeeeeyyy! Lemme outttt!" Aang banged on the door, feeling quite claustrophobic._

"_I'll let you out if you ask Katara to homecoming dance", Azula bargained, leaning on the locker while checking her fingernails._

_**-0-0-0-0-0-**_

Aang took in a deep breath (deeper than normal people would since he did have larger than average lung capacity, which was part of his mutation) and strode to the group of girls (Katara, Suki, Ty Lee, a girl who was a freshman like him, and three other girls Aang did not recognize). It would be super embarrassing, he knew, but part of Azula's deal was that he had to do that in public.

"…_or else…"_ Azula could sound very very scary if she wanted to.

Finally, he arrived. His raised a shaky hand and tapped Katara on the shoulder. "K-katara?"

Katara turned to him. "Oh, hi, Aang", she greeted brightly. "You're coming to the homecoming dance, right? Suki's Aunt runs a catering business and she's taking care of the dessert. We're gonna have Ba Sing Se egg custard! You'd love it."

"Uh… haha… yeah, about that", Aang laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck and seemed to have shrunken. "Umm…"

"Are you alright?" Katara frowned. "You're sweating and pale", with all the good intention of the mother hen that she was, Katara pressed the back of her hand on the boy's forehead, turning his pale face crimson so fast.

Aang decided to just go for it… by practically screaming. "WOULD YOU GO TO THE HOMECOMING DANCE WITH ME?!"

Naturally, Katara flinched. And the other students lingering around the hallway sniggered.

Katara, however, smiled kindly at the boy who wished he could disappeared right now (which he, with his superspeed, practically could). "Of course I'd go to the homecoming dance with you", she said. "Pick me up at Jasmine Dragon at six? I have to be at school before seven since I'm with the committee."

Aang's wide-opened mouth curved. "Sure!" he beamed.

The hallway broke into a slow but appreciative applause.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Jawwa District – Abandoned Wang King Paint Factory; Saturday, 21 September 2013, 04:12 PM)_

Taking cover behind a metal control panel that used to operate the giant machine that poured paint into the cans, Probationary Detective Takamichi Mori reloaded his Glock. Upon his acceptance to the RCPD, Taka was issued a Glock, like June, who was also taking cover beside her, was. He himself preferred an M1911, which was his sidearm of choice during his active days with the Yu Yan, and still it was part of his arsenal as a member of the Black Rider. The shorter barrel and stockier built of a Glock made his shot felt… _duller_ to him.

"You look nervous", June chirped almost happily, sitting with her back on the console and patting Nyla's head. Like him, she also wore a body armor over her outfit, black and with a yellow RCPD on the back and chest.

"No, not at all", Taka tried to peek over their cover but the rain of bullets renewed itself. "Just another day at the office. Have I told you that, one time, I was blown up? I mean, literally blown up! C4 planted in our camp and I was caught in the explosion."

"Oh, yeah", June frowned. "I keep forgetting that you used to be a soldier."

"Well, sniper", Taka shrugged, waiting for the shooting to let up. "Didn't get shot at as much as you think, but still…"

The sound of bullets pinging off metal stopped, prompting the two cops to disperse and go two different directions; June and Nyla moved to the left and took cover behind a steel cart while Taka leaped over a conveyor and ran behind a forklift. The rain of bullets came again, only this time, it spread from side to side, forcing Taka and June to get low.

Turning to Taka, June made some hand gesture; a thumb jabbing at the direction of the target, finger pointing Taka, her index finger shot out, then she pointed at herself, and her index and middle finger shot up. Taka nodded as he understood the hand sign; he was to provide covering fire and June would take the target down.

The large obese trafficker was aimed with an AK-47 though -well, several of them- and endless supply of ammo it seemed.

Still, waiting for the pause in between him dropping his empty rifle and picking up new loaded one from the crate near him, Taka steeled himself. As the shooting stopped, he emerged from his hiding place and fired slow but steady series of shots that hit the cover where the criminal was hiding, forcing him on the defensive. Taka counted his shots as he stepped out and moved to another cover ahead slowly.

…_*bang*… 14… *bang*…15… *bang*…16… *bang*…17!_ And he was out.

Taka quickly ran ahead to the steel pillar that he had been eying earlier, hastily reloading his gun behind it. He heard the sound of slow even shooting like he had done earlier from June's direction and wondered if he had misread June's signs, although, admittedly, June was already far ahead of him.

An angry beastly roar echoed inside the abandoned building, followed by the scream of pain. Taka quickly emerged from his hiding place, noticing June had done the same, and together they dashed towards the criminal while still keeping low just in case they got shot at again.

Behind a steel cart that was carrying a crate of illegal rifles and that ran on a rail, the large man was struggling with Nyla with the latter winning. June whistled and Nyla retreated, still growling and baring her row of sharp fangs. Panting, the large man raised his arms above his face, still recoiling from the fight with the Doberman.

Taka grinned. "When someone said you're under arrest…" he kicked the man's side hard, forcing the man to roll to his stomach. "…you surrender quietly", he stored his gun and handcuffed the large man while June called for backup.

With quite a struggle, he hauled the obese man up. Turning to his partner, Taka grinned. "Nice job, girl."

June smirked and said. "Thanks", while Nyla barked once.

Few minutes later, they found themselves outside the perimeter of the factory where half a dozen cop cruisers had come and secured the area, putting on yellow tapes. Leaning on their SUV bumper, Taka watched Jee and Chit Sang coordinating the cops in the factory. Nyla ran up to him and jumped a little, pushing his leg with her front paws as a greeting. Taka noticed the strong womanly floral scent that he would one day learn to be black orchid, and saw June's shadow falling on the ground in front of him before he noticed the girl's presence.

"You did a good job", June said, handing Taka a bottle of water. "You know, despite being a rookie to a real gunfight."

"You've been in a lot?" Taka asked, watching June taking off her armor and silently admiring her curves under her very flattering black sleeveless blouse.

"I've been in some", June hummed, climbing on top of the SUV's hood and sat there; she then lifted the hemp of her blouse and showed Taka her side. "I got this few months ago", she said, rubbing and pulling the skin near the gunshot scar. "Nasty guy with a revolver caught me off guard."

Taka liked what he saw; not the scar, but June's taut stomach.

"I hate that snub-nosed revolver", June griped, stretching her arms. "So small, you can never know if someone is concealing it when they pretended to surrender to you."

Taka sniggered, taking a sip of his water. "Then you won't like what I have on my ankle holster", he grinned. "Although, if you're into scars, you might like what you see when I take off my shirt. Have I told you that, one time, I was run over by a tank?"

June chuckled. "Psh, yeah…"

"I'm serious", Taka said. "I have the scar to prove it."

June smirked. "Prove it."

Taka, had already taken off his armor and now was in his shirt, unbuttoned the top button. "I'll prove it."

"Go ahead", challenged June.

"I'll do it."

"Okay."

"I'll strip right here!"

"Go for it."

Taka relented. "Yeah… let's keep this partnership PG-13 for now, shall we?"

June laughed and ruffled his hair.

**-W-A-T-E-R-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop, Team Avatar HQ; Saturday, 21 September 2013, 05:32 PM)_

Aang and Sokka were already there, each in their rented suit. On Ji, with her glasses on, still in her T shirt and jeans, was happily typing away on the console with Song by her side, also in her daily clothes of T shirt under a thin purple jacket and a pair of trainers, reading a thick book silently, and quickly, flipping page after page as if she was merely skimming through them.

The elevator door slid open and in walked Mako and Bolin, looking sharp with oiled hair and tailored suits, courtesy of Asami, who looked nothing short of gorgeous in her maroon Eastern Fire Nation (or Western Earth Kingdom, depending on who you ask) sleeveless cheongsam dress, with her wavy hair adorned so tastefully by a single golden leaf hairpin that held the side of her hair. Mako was wearing his red scarf, tucked inside his suit.

"He-hey!" Sokka wolf whistled. "Looking good there."

"Why, thank you, Sokka", Bolin gracefully accepted the praise.

"Uh…"

The elevator slid open again and the girls came in; Ty Lee and her very flattering pink dress linked her arms with a sour looking Mai, her hair down for once, wearing a long wine red dress, and Suki, grinning wide at Sokka, looking pretty and sunny in her bright yellow dress. Behind them, Azula was positively sulking, despite wearing her red dress, walking by Katara who was in her frilly blue dress. Both girls had their hair done (by Ursa); Azula had her hair partially tied in a ponytail, and Katara's brown was bunched in an elegant bun. Azula had fought valiantly against her mother and had won some ground, in which she, unlike Katara, was wearing very little makeup. Not that she needed it, Asami had to admit. She had seen Azula before, although never had the pleasure of being her acquaintance, both were part of the high society, and she had seen Azula in this formal shell before.

"H-hi…" Aang's mouth felt dry all of a sudden as Katara approached her.

"Hi—", Katara began but Azula (not so) subtly nudged her towards Aang; scowling a little at the girl, Katara tried again with Aang. "Hi, Aang", she smiled. "You look handsome", she said, rubbing Aang's brow with her thumb.

Sokka, upon seeing his little sister and Aang, having been told by Suki of how Aang had asked Katara to the dance, stood up from his seat and began approaching the two. He had planned to give the traditional big brother's 'you better treat her well or else' speech. Unluckily for him, Azula caught on to him. Azula had been a rather odd friend of the Waters siblings since they were little kids and she knew Sokka well enough to know how his mind worked. A faithful wingwoman that she was, she strode purposefully to Sokka, grateful for her flat strapped sandals, and intercepted the big brother, pulling him away by the ear.

The elevator door slid open the third time and the Fire Nation boy walked in, accompanied by the Dark One. The Fire Nation boy, much to their surprise, looked pretty casual despite his suit. His shirt was unbuttoned at the top and he was not wearing a tie, and his hair was as messy as always.

"Well, Team", he began, smiling at the lot. "I have good news, he has bad news", he titled his head at the Dark One. "Good news is, you girls are looking good", he grinned; Ty Lee, Suki, and Katara went 'awwww' at his remark.

"The bad news is…" the Dark One sounded somber, even with his voice masking device. "…the Blue Spirit is off the team."

The Team did not respond… at all.

"You guys are taking it well", the Fire Nation boy chuckled, raising his left arm a little; still kinda pouty, Azula grabbed his arm by the bend of his elbow. "The Blue Spirit will still assist, maybe, of freelance capacity. Now, if you'll excuse me, me and my date have to talk to the Principal before the dance. And you, young lady!" he aimed the last part at On Ji. "Why are you not in your dress?"

"Ng…" On Ji swiveled a little in her chair. "I'm… not feeling good?"

"Take an aspirin", the Fire Nation boy said flatly. "I've prepared a dress and a makeup crew for you upstairs. Go."

"But… but…"

"Go."

Groaning like a spoilt child, On Ji got up and dragged her feet to the elevator, followed by the Fire Nation boy and Azula. Inside the elevator, Azula asked. "How come you get to order her around like that?"

The Fire Nation boy simply shrugged. "I'm her uncle."

In the HQ, Sokka was happily inspecting the Dark One's weapons. "Wooww…why is this one bigger?" he asked excitedly, holding the Dark One's main gun.

"It fires plasma bullets", the Dark One said. "It packs more punch but requires the bullet to be individually loaded, only holds eight shots", he pulled out one his sidearm strapped to his thigh, the 'box gun'. "Now, this is an improved version… ish", he took out the magazine from the compartment and handed it to Sokka; a box with a luminescent red substance in it. "Plasma cell. Less firepower, but it has over a hundred shots."

"Whoa…" Sokka nearly drooled at the toys.

"Your rifle has the same mechanism, yes?" the Dark One asked.

"Yeah…" Sokka winced and took a closer look at the power cell. "But, I never actually fire it in any of our mission yet. And Iroh said it only fires some kind of concussive energy plasma. Can't kill."

"And your sidearms?"

"Oh, regular handguns", Sokka returned the weapons to the Dark One. "But, you know, rubber bullets", he sounded grumbly.

The Dark One flashed one of his smirks. "I'm in the middle of a negotiation with the Industry to develop more plasma weapons for the Team", he said. "It would be much more of a reassurance if our weapons come from the same suppliers. Maintenance and resupplying will be easier that way."

"You know, I could use sidearm", Sokka said, smirking. "But, if that's okay, I would very much like to improve my rifle on my own. Maybe I can even build a new one."

"Alright, with one condition", the Dark One said with a knowing smile. "You are _not_ to dismantle any weapons we give you."

Sokka grumbled, his plan busted.

"I will hook you up with some people in the Industry", the Dark One laughed. "They will teach you the basics of plasma weaponries."

At the command console, Song was talking into the comm. "Alright, you guys are online. Head count and sitrep."

"_Torrent, here. Patrolling Rose Garden."_

"_Archer, still in civilian skin."_

"_Ghost, en route to Jawwa. Rock with me."_

"No words on Blind Bandit?" Song asked.

"_Nope",_ Torrent replied. _"I tried but she doesn't respond. Maybe she's going to the dance after all."_

Bolin excitedly occupied On Ji's seat. "Oh, hi, Korra! Korra! Hey, are you sure you don't wanna come?" he then turned his voice sad. "I still need a date, you know."

"_Yeah… I'd just step on your toe",_ Torrent drawled.

"Ahem!" Song cleared her throat loudly, tapping at a large jar they had put on the table; the jar had a paper stuck on it, a circle with a diagonal line, with '_names_!' in the middle. "And, Katara", Song turned to the Water Tribe girl. "You do know that we monitor everybody's commlink, right?"

Grimacing, Katara took out five yuans from her purse and reluctantly handed it over; she did call Arrow Boy by name during the fire rescue that morning.

Upstairs in Iroh's apartment, Azula and the Fire Nation boy were sitting on the couch, waiting for On Ji. "Can the four of them handle patrol tonight?" Azula asked, flipping channel randomly.

"I have a couple Riders on plain clothes on standby", he said.

"Oh, please", Azula snickered. "Knowing you, by now, you've had your Riders assimilated among the civilians, all ready to take over the Republic City if you need to."

The Fire Nation boy laughed. "Now, how do you know that?"

"I know you", Azula replied smugly. "You're… your style of strategy is all about using overwhelming power."

"I do love smart girls", the Fire Nation boy smiled, pressing Azula's head carefully to his shoulder. Azula tried not to react so much to that comment.

On Ji appeared later from the guestroom they had borrowed from Iroh in an elegant red dress that complimented her Fire Nation pale complexion, with her long hair up in a bun, and modest looking thin gold chain with a small diamond as a center piece around her neck, and a gold bracelet on her left wrist. She was positively pouting.

"Tell you what?" the Fire Nation boy got up and walked up to her. "Since I'm an awesome uncle, I'll let you borrow my credit card this weekend", he grinned, tapping the girl's nose.

"I'll hold you up on that", On Ji grumbled, taking a small box from her purse and handing it to the boy.

"Right", the boy said. The three of them walked down the stairs and the boy took from the box a chain bracelet with twelve zodiac animals around it, and a centerpiece of a small tear-shaped amber. "You were born in the Year of Monkey, if I remember correctly?" he asked Azula, putting the bracelet on Azula's right wrist. "I'm four years older than you, that'd mean I was born in the Year of Dragon."

"Dragon?" Azula smirked, admiring her new bracelet. "Why am I not surprised?"

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Rose Garden – Weller Street; Saturday, 21 September 2013, 07:23 PM)_

Torrent solidified her water into a pair of sticks, one in each hand. The thugs rushed at her, five of them, all wearing balaclava and all armed with baseball bats. She countered their hits expertly, thanking her father for forcing her to learn Eskrima from Master Piandao (_"You're already good with many forms of hand-to-hand combat", _the man had once said through the phone_. "Now, learn how to handle a weapon! Or we will stop sending money to you!"_).

She swung her water-sticks fast, defending against all the hits the five thugs sent her way. So fast she could barely think. Leaping back, she drew distance and, molding her water into a ball; she sent the ball of water at the thugs hard and the concussive force knocked them out.

Happy with her work, Torrent dusted her hands, grinning inside her mask. She was just about to exit the alley and asked the HQ to notify the cops when she heard a clicking sound behind her; the distinct sound of a gun being cocked. Before she could turn, she heard the ominous sound of metal which she had come to associate with the metal wire of Blind Bandit.

Turning, she saw the smaller girl standing on top of a downed thug; her metal whip slithered back into the coil, tied around a handgun. Blind Bandit caught the gun and crunched it in her hands like it was made of paper.

**-F-I-R-E-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – the United Nations Academy; Saturday, 21 September 2013, 08:00 PM)_

In the gym turned ballroom, the guests clapped their hands as they crowned Star as Homecoming Queen. The perky girl was about to go on her long-ranting of a speech of which quality foreshadowed by her starting it so eloquently with a high-pitched scream of excitement and a rapid 'ohmygodohmygodohmygod!'; Principal Umma luckily took the microphone away and herded the girl to the dance floor where she, as Homecoming Queen, had the duty to start the dance.

The Fire Nation boy, standing with Azula, On Ji, and Aang at the refreshment table, picked up a cheese cube. "What if I am to tell you that with this cheese cube, I can destroy that girl's social life forever?"

Azula smirked and seemed very interested in the idea; Aang's empathic power told him that the boy was not kidding. "Please don't?" he grimaced at the boy.

"You're no fun", the Fire Nation boy almost pouted, popping the cheese cube into his mouth. "A dance?" he asked Azula.

Aang scanned the room quickly as the crowd began to dance; Katara was still talking to Principal Umma at the side of the stage. On Ji looked at him hopefully, Aang noticed, but he had never attended an event such as this before and he kind of wanted his first dance to be with…well, Katara.

"Come on", the Fire Nation boy grabbed On Ji's wrist as he and Azula eased into the dance floor. "I even got you a date. Am I an awesome uncle of what?" he gently pushed On Ji into Haru's arms. "You kids have fun now."

With a sly smirk, he waltzed away with Azula, leaving the two blushing kids alone.

"Well, this is awkward", Haru cleared his throat, tugging the collar of his shirt under his old suit.

"Yeah…" On Ji concurred. "Should I just step you on the toe now so we can skip the dancing?"

On the other side of the room, Mai and Zuko sat at the rows of chairs, both looking dour, so nothing unusual there. Bolin was at another refreshment table, accompanied by Sokka and Suki. Mako and Asami were dancing; Asami giggled at Mako's awkward move. "Sorry", Mako smiled nervously. "I never really learnt how to dance. Never thought I'd need the skill."

"Well, now you do", Asami said kindly. "Just follow my lead."

Azula danced with her Fire Nation boy elegantly. "Fascinating", she commented.

"What is?" the Fire Nation boy arched a brow.

"Your strategy", Azula said. "You anticipated everything, didn't you? Which is not the most terrifying thing about your strategy; that'd be the fact that you take advantage of everything."

"Hmm…" the Fire Nation boy narrowed his eyes and there was a thin smile on his face. "Clarify."

"You want me and my team to join the Riders, and my dad is okay with it", Azula began, twirling as that part of the dance came. "At the same time, you manipulated the formation of the other two teams, and then you formed Team Avatar with the secret provision that your Riders and me and my girls would be the more… antihero members of Team Avatar."

"Mmm-hmm", the boy smirked.

"Your being elected team leader ruined everything since it now restricts your movement", Azula continued. "What intrigues me is that Team Avatar's birth is so close to the International Pro-Heroes Law", she said. "Why do I get the feeling that, at this very moment, your Riders are attacking the Shadow Society with extreme prejudice?"

"And why would they do that?" the Fire Nation boy asked interestedly.

Azula shrugged. "The Pro-Heroes Law will ensure cooperation from the World Council, but restrict any heroes from the use of lethal force; a fact that many villains will take advantage of. Your Riders are not above using violence and you could have them unleash their righteous fury at the Shadow Society to warn them that, Pro-Heroes Law or not, the Riders are not to be trifled with. I can clearly picture some execution and assassination being carried out right now by the Riders."

"Impressive", the boy smiled broader. "They are not, by the way, and nor will they. I…" he frowned a bit, still smiling. "I decided to put my trust in Team Avatar", his bright amber eyes scanned around, registering the members of the Team among the crowd: Sokka and Bolin who were busy stuffing their faces, encouraged by Suki; Katara and Aang dancing with slight blush on their faces; Mako and Asami, laughing together while dancing; Mai, sitting with Zuko, looking bored; Ty Lee, sitting with On Ji and Haru, talking animatedly with them.

The Fire Nation boy let a little sad bitterness taint his smile. "I've seen glimpses of the lowest and the worst men can be", he returned his soft gentle gaze back at Azula's amber orbs. "I'm tired of it all", he said sincerely, sounding fifty years older than he was. "Team Avatar is my shot of redemption."

"_Your_ shot?" Azula narrowed her eyes.

"I was gonna say 'the universe's shot of redemption to me' but I don't wanna sound so high and mighty", the boy snickered.

Azula let a small smile slip.

The music smoothly transitioned to the slow melodic guitar opening of Lifehouse's _Everything_.

"Slow dance's coming", Azula said, pulling away.

The boy gripped her slipping hand gently. "Do you care?"

Azula seemed to ponder over it a little. True, she had been feeling all sort of unfamiliar but strangely exhilarating feeling since she stepped foot in the gym, holding the boy's arm. She had not missed the whispers, gestures, and staring directed at them and she could no longer fool herself that it was because the boy was quite a famous name.

…_Find me here… Speak to me…_

"People are still staring", the boy smiled. "But, do you care?"

Azula did like it when boys treated her like he did: with respect.

…_You are the light that's leading me… to the place where I find peace again…_

She moved her hand from his grasp and his shoulder, and joined them behind his neck, arms linking his neck. "No", she smiled softly.

The boy stepped closer and held her gently by the waist.

"You know what would impress me more?" Azula said, looking up to the taller boy, her face so close to his.

She felt the burst of breath on her face when the boy snickered. "If I'm in a band?" the boy guessed.

Azula's mouth parted slightly. "Now, how do you know that?" she tugged on the boy a little, acting a little miff despite her strained smile.

The boy lowered down and whispered to her ear. "I'm magic."

Azula chuckled. She returned her eyes on his and said through the wave of comfort she felt running through her. "You're a dummy."

_How can I stand here with you, and not be moved by you…? Would you tell me how could it be any better than this…?_

They swayed gently, feeling each other where they were close; Azula felt strength from his hands on her waist and, at the same time, gentleness. She felt age and wisdom, like he was an old man… she felt his burden, his lethargy… Azula felt the pain he was holding in and had hidden behind his brave dependable front.

…_Would you take me in…? Take me deeper now…_

She nearly gasped. The boy's brows flickered and Azula felt his hands moved a fraction, holding her gentler. She smiled at this and, deciding not to care, stepped closer, circling her arms on his neck and resting the side of her head on his chest as she pressed herself on him.

…_Cause you're all I want, you're all I need… You're everything… everything…_

Azula closed her eyes and let the world disappeared; there was no one else in this world but her and the boy. She felt his breath on top of her head where he had pressed his face lightly, feeling him taking in the scent of her hair. Azula smiled and gripped him a tad tighter.

She felt him pecking her head and she slowly opened her eyes, catching Katara's eyes; the Water Tribe girl had stopped dancing and stood at the sideline, watching the dancers, and she let a strained smile blossom on her face but she politely looked away. Azula fought a losing battle against her own dawning smile and emerged slowly from the boy's chest. Looking up, she once again found those bright amber eyes of his. So many things she wanted to say and, at the same time, she could not utter a word. The first thing that came was: "Don't…" and she could not bring herself to add anything to the premature sentence.

The boy smiled softly. "I won't", he whispered as the music approached the climax. "I promise you I won't; I will never hurt you."

…_And how can I stand here with you, and not be moved by you…? _

She closed her eyes as he leaned down and their lips met ever so gently, and they melted into the kiss.

…_Would you tell me how could it be any better than this…?_

A pair of mismatched amber eyes looked at the two giggling teens and they looked rather apprehensive. Zuko sighed and turned to Mai. "Wanna dance?"

"No."

**-R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-**

_(Republic City, Tosako – Jasmine Dragon Teashop; Saturday, 21 September 2013, 10:09 PM)_

Iroh almost dozed off when the bell above the door of his teashop rang; Ty Lee and Katara led the group, followed by Aang, Sokka, and Suki. Haru and On Ji came next, laughing with each other, then Mako and Asami, comforting Bolin who was not successful in asking anyone for a dance. Mai and Zuko entered next, hand-in-hand. Azula, hugging the Fire Nation boy's arm, entered last.

"Hey, Korra!" Bolin excited ran to the girl who was sitting at the center table with Iroh and Toph. "Korra! You really missed out! The dance was awesome… although it would be awesomer if I could have a dance partner, which I didn't, so it wasn't really so awesome, although it was still awesome. Azula has a boyfriend now."

Azula whipped her head towards the annoying boy and short him a sharp glare.

"Uh…guys", Korra began with no trace of mirth on her face. "There's a… bad news", she turned to Toph uneasily. "Toph's parents arrived a few hours ago. They're taking her home to Earth Kingdom tomorrow."

Their smiles slowly disappeared.


End file.
